Nolan Videos

Here are a few recent videos of Nolan, since I have been staying home with him this summer. Enjoy!

Just in case I forget to post a video, here are the sites I keep updated consistently:
Videos - YouTube
Pictures - Picasa Web Albums

The Pick-up/Put-down Method

Our six month old son does not like sleeping.

Nolan does like eating, however. He falls asleep eating all the time. Many parents just put their child into bed after feeding them to sleep. The problem with that is often Nolan stirs in his sleep, barely waking himself up, and then he doesn't know how to put himself back to sleep since he depends on eating to do it.

Many other parents try the "cry it out" method. This supposedly tires the baby out from crying by themselves, so they just fall asleep on their own. I tried this with Nolan when he was younger, and I got to the point where him crying for 45 minutes straight didn't seem worth it.

We decided to try a more balanced approach to putting our son to sleep: the "pick-up/put-down" method. It is relatively simple. Pick up Nolan when he cries, and then put him back down into the crib when he calms down. Repeat. That's it. Eventually he rolls to his side and falls into a nice deep sleep. Sometimes it may be repeated many times, over and over again, but it is worth it. He learns to depend on sleeping in his crib rather than during feeding, and he doesn't cry for long periods of uninterrupted contact.

This method is also a great way to get to know my son better. During this time, I develop a better understanding of his mood, feelings, and attitude. My patience is also being transformed during this time, giving me a desire to love him through an exhausting up/down routine. If I am putting him down to nap, it takes approximately an average of 10 minutes before he falls asleep, and then he naps for about 1.5 hours, depending on the day.

Overall, I love this method, and it works very well for Nolan. It may not work for every baby in the world, but it is a nicely balanced method that gives my son the rest he needs and time for me to relax by myself.

S-A-H D Lesson #2

Stay-At-Home Dad Lesson #2: I need to get out of the house!
I am back into the swing of things with Nolan. Now that school is out, we don't need a babysitter anymore, since I can stay home and watch him over the summer. It is quite a bit different now, at six months, than when I was watching him three months ago. Now he is crawling, eating solid foods, and beginning to finally act more like a human.
It is not necessarily more difficult to take care of him at six months rather than three months, it is just a lot different. He still requires a great deal of attention, but thankfully I don't need to hold him as much and that's nice since he is getting heavier by the day.
After being around many people day after day when teaching, it is a big change to come home and not even be able to hold a conversation with him. It is draining being the only adult in the room for so long...I find myself wanting to get out of the house and interact with other adults. Thankfully, now that it is sunny outside, I can take Nolan on walks for some fresh air and vitamin d.
On evenings when we have something scheduled with friends, I feel much more excited to go than I did when I was teaching. Working at a middle school is certainly draining, which is why I was always tired when I got home. When staying at home, I am actually more energized when Jen comes home from work.
It is very interesting to view it from this perspective. I hope to use this understanding in the future, and I will make sure that when Jen stays home, I will think of her need to get out and be social.

Nolan in his crib

I posted this video on facebook a few days ago. I have been staying at home with Nolan ever since school has been out, and I must say that he is much more interesting than my 8th graders. :-) Being a stay-at-home dad again is much different than it was three months ago. This age (6 mo.) is so much fun! Can't wait for him to start crawling... he is almost there!

 

New Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail

Well, it looks like I'll be attempting another MAX Challenge in the near future! Here comes light rail into the south... Milwaukie!! Can't wait for the new bridge!

Related:
The MAX Challenge: Taking MAX to the Max!
MAX Challenge Success!

Two Working Parents

"It sucks," says Jen.

"Agreed," I replied.

I was teaching at a middle school as a long-term sub from September to January. Then I took a break (well, it was good timing since my job ended) to spend time with Jen and Nolan. I was a stay-at-home dad when Jen went back to work. And big surprise, on April Fool's Day (no joke), I get a call from the principal at the middle school asking me to finish up for the rest of the year. This is a great opportunity, so I know I should jump at it.

The dillema is... should Jen quit her job and look after Nolan? After much thought, we decided it would be wise for us both to keep working and find someone to watch our boy. We thankfully found a great friend willing to take him on, in addition to her own toddler.

Both of us working, away from Nolan (thankfully only temporary, until June), is one of the hardest things we have ever done. We are both control freaks and having our son in someone else's care (even a trustworthy person) is very hard for us. We honestly don't know how parents leave their kids at daycare without it bothering them.

God is teaching us a lot in this phase of life, and we will appreciate it so much more when we settle into the roles we want to be in: Dad working full-time in a contract job, Mom working full-time at home, and Nolan working on his napping routine rather than a car seat routine. Until then, even though "it sucks", we will take these speed bumps as best we can, praising God for pruning us along the way.

Will My Child Have Poland Syndrome?

What's the number one question people ask when you tell them you are going to have a baby? "Is it a boy or a girl?"

When Jen and I started telling people we were going to have a baby boy, I occasionally heard another question. "Is the baby healthy?"

I started to think about all of the traits that I could possibly pass to my son. Some would be good, and some would be bad. I naturally thought of physical traits first, which led me to wonder... "Could I pass my Poland Syndrome to him? Would he be healthy?"

What does the word "healthy" really mean, anyway? Does it mean that if the baby is healthy, then they won't have to grow up with unnecessary difficulties? And what difficulties might they be? Physical difficulties? Mental difficulties? Emotional difficulties? What about situational or social difficulties?

The reality is that everyone has difficulties in life. Everyone has flaws. Paul said, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," (Rom.3). No one is perfect, and everyone is unhealthy in one way or another.

The Bible says that all children are a blessing! If a baby is born "healthy," then that child is a blessing! If a baby is born with Poland Syndrome, then that child is a blessing! If a baby is born with Down Syndrome, then that child is a blessing! If a baby is born with Tay-Sachs disease and will not likely live long, then that child is still a blessing!

We named our son Nolan, and he ended up being born large for gestational age (LGA). This condition affects about 8% of all births, and it basically means he was a big baby compared to most. It hasn't really been a problem for him (other than having a difficult birth), although some LGA babies have problems regulating their blood sugar, some have jaundice, and some have respiratory distress. We will certainly find many flaws in our son as he grows up. The biggest flaw being sin, of course.

God still works through people, no matter what difficulties they have in their lives. No matter what sin. God takes the crap in our lives and uses it for good. In Romans, Paul continues in the next verse by writing, "and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ." He redeems us and can use our imperfect bodies for wonderful things.

Many people with Poland Syndrome worry about passing it on to their children, but since it is a congenital birth defect that is not a genetic disorder, then it scientifically cannot happen. The only way to get the deformity would be by random chance. Nolan does not have Poland Syndrome, and the likelihood of us both having it would be something like 1-in-a-trillion.

Even if our son did have Poland Syndrome, Jen and I wouldn't be worried. What we all really need to be concerned about are the sin problems in our lives. God loves us no matter what our size or shape is, but sin is what He hates. Sin is the only flaw we have that God wants us to change.


Related Posts:

I Have Poland Syndrome

My Tattoo

My Daily Battle With Poland Syndrome