Number of days in Amsterdam – 245
Number of days without a bike theft – 241
Days since it last rained – 3
On another sunny, but frightfully cold Amsterdam day, where subzero temperatures continue to increase the possibility of 2012 being the year for the Elfstedentocht (which is not as apocalyptic as it sounds), I awoke to discover that somebody stole my perfectly sweet wonderful baby, and replaced it with a grumpy little monster.
She’s not hungry. She’s not wet. She doesn’t want to be held. She doesn’t want to be put down. She won’t sleep. She just wants to be angry.
It makes me wonder if she’s starting to cut teeth. A bit of research is showing me that three months is early, but still quite common. And she could even start feeling teeth coming in that may not show for a month or so. She does have the little buds on her gums, so we’ll see.
I don’t want this angry monster, though. So whomever made the switch last night, very funny. Now come switch it back.
COOL DADDY GADGET
I’ll not profess to being an expert at being a Stay-At-Home-Dad (SAHD), as this is only my sixth day on the job, but I am already starting to notice things that I do want to share. This little tip comes in the form of a product that makes my life much easier, and it will work quite well for Stay-At-Home-Moms (SAHM), too, which I am quite sure I know even less about being.
It’s the Boppy.
The Boppy, for those of you with no kids, is a horseshoe-shaped pillow that goes around your waist. It’s like a much larger version of one of those airplane pillows. And it gives you a place to put the baby. It allows you to feed the baby with having to cradle her, it works as an infant-sized easy chair to plop the baby on the couch next to you (NEVER unattended), and it takes care of an occupational hazard that afflicts SAHD’s, a workplace-related medical condition that I was unaware of until last week.
I’m talking about lap cramps.
Now the Kitten is one that prefers to get her afternoon nap in my lap. Draping her there allows her to sleep longer and more comfortably, and provided I am next to my laptop, I get work done. In the crib or on her mat, her naps are brief and restless. In my lap, I can count on a good hour. I don’t know if it’s body heat or that she just feels safer close to me, but this is where she naps on weekday afternoons right now.
Before I inserted the Boppy between us, the weight of holding a limp sleeping baby on my lap actually got painful after a while because, as a new father, I have yet to build up the “lap callus” that more experienced dads have. Eventually, my lap will be acclimated to extended lapsitting sessions but for now the Boppy is the way yo go.
Now I’m sure that most parents own a Boppy. Which is good, because they are indispensable in so many ways, but if you’re not using it to prevent lap cramps, you’re missing out.
In fact, it’s so comfortable that I didn’t even realize that whomever swapped my baby last night just popped in and traded me back my sweet little napper for their angry little monster.
At least i hope so.
the boppy is an invaluable tool, though i wish it was named something less goofy. we had the same nap experience with Beatrix and Simon- they preferred a lap and a boppy to sleeping anywhere else. it’s just a matter of making sure you have a drink, phone, and book/computer within arm’s reach and you’re good to go.
This is about the time we figured out that Noah likes sleeping on his tummy. It felt so wrong at first, but turned out to be just fine and he has done it ever since. It’s only lately that he sleeps on his back or side. He would have never slept through the night, when he was little if we hadn’t let him sleep that way. I hate to condone it, because of the SIDS risks, but I am just sayin, it totally worked for us. I tried it during a nap time, and did not take my eyes off him the whole time. Once I saw he was just fine, we let him sleep that way always. He was strong and able to move his head. I would never suggest it if baby was not able to lift and move their own head. He started teething early too, those teethers you keep in the fridge are great for that. So is Orajel and baby tylenol. Good Luck Daddy! You are doing a marvelous job xx