Day 246 – February 7, 2011 – Timewarp…

Number of days in Amsterdam – 246

Number of days without a bike theft – 242

Days since it last rained – 4

It doesn’t really seem out of that ordinary to go so many days without any precipitation, as the temperatures are so low (through all of Europe), that I’m pretty sure the whole world must be frozen.

And the news is confirming it. It seems that a record number of folks here were without water when their water pipes froze. It gets worse with a concern that we never had to deal with in Detroit – one family had their house sink, when the pipes in their canal boat burst and filled the boat with water.

So the Kitten and I are hibernating as I pontificate on a baby’s ability to manipulate the constraints of time.

When she was born, I would watch her sleep for a few moments, only to take note of the time and realize that an hour had passed. This phenomena continues, when I can play with her for just a few minutes, again discovering that she has warped time.

Today, I discovered another variation on her ability to bend the very nature of time and space. I was listening to English Breakfast Radio, and the announcer had just noted that it was five minutes past eight, when she started melting down.

She then proceeded to embark upon a complete screaming reign of devastation that lasted for several hours. She wasn’t hungry, or wet and while she may have been tired, she wouldn’t sleep. As hour after hour dragged on, my sanity was shredded to bits, as was my faith in my ability to parent this inconsolable little ball of demon rage. Finally, as inexplicably as it started, it stopped. She was content. Smiling, even.

And the announcer on English Breakfast Radio announced it was 20 past eight.

The Kitten had managed to slow time in order to cram several hours worth of screaming into just 15 minutes!

If only I were able to manage time so effectively.

Now the reason I was listening to English Breakfast Radio was, well for one, it’s the only English language morning radio show here, and a really good one to boot. But the reason I was listening to it in particular today is that I was invited to be a guest host on the show Thursday morning, to play a little music, talk a bit and read some news. I’m hoping it’s a ton of fun!

In order for me to go do that, though, we needed a babysitter.

This is a tough, tall order.

You see, we’ve never done that, left the Kitten with anyone other than her grandparents for any length of time.

I wasn’t even sure where to start.

Fortunately, Kitten’s boyfriend’s parents stepped in. They’re being so kind as to loan us their babysitter.

Now I haven’t met her yet, but if they trust her with their little one, a week younger than Kitten, I’m sure a couple of hours is a safe bet.

COOL DADDY GADGET

While I haven’t decided if this is going to be a regular feature here, a big part of this blog is not only our new life in Amsterdam, but our new life as parents and my new role as the Stay-At-Home-Dad (SAHD), so if I have any wisdom to share in my limited experience, I’ll do so gladly. In addition, it’s too cold to get outside much right now.

And, like yesterday’s Cool Daddy Gadget, today’s is just as good for the Stay-At-Home-Moms (SAHM), and also has a silly name.

It’s the Wubbanub.

The binky (AKA pacifier, for those of you who don’t speak baby lingo) is an integral part of the baby’s day, and by default the parents’. Sometimes, it’s the only solution to soothe a fussy baby, and sometimes it’s exactly what the baby wants – the reason for the fussing. But many babies, mine included, have a hard time holding on to the binky. It falls out, causing more fussing until the hole is once again plugged.

Now the Wubbanub gives the baby more control over the situation.

It’s essentially a little stuffed animal that’s holding the backside of a binky in its mouth, so that when the baby is sucking on it, the baby and the animal are nose to nose.

But it gives the baby something to hold onto, helping her keep the binky in her mouth.

We got one for Christmas from Grandma Carol (a lamb), and immediately decided we wanted a second. Fortunately, a dear old friend had read our minds, as another one (this one a monkey) arrived in the mail a day or two later.

It does have a couple drawbacks. Sometimes the baby forgets the cause and effect her hands have on the world and yanks it out of her mouth and gets angry, but she keeps getting better at that as she matures, and often loves to lie and cuddle the animal and suck the pacifier for extended periods.

It’s also a see-through nipple, so if you look closely, you see right through it to her toothless maw chomping happily away, and the effect is similar to seeing a sucker fish latched onto the glass of an aquarium. But really, I find this bizarrely fascinating in a gross way, and am actually more inclined to name it as a benefit, rather than a drawback.

So the Wubbanub gets another thumbs up in my book.

It keeps the Kitten happy, and limits the time that she spends stopping time.