the Light at the end of the tunnel: October 2009

A few random things...

Malcolm got over his ear infection pretty easily. We're grateful because that isn't always the case. Shout-out of thanks to Dr. Marty Molina for the help.

He now has 7 teeth that have poked thru--4 up top and 3 on the bottom. They often pop out in pairs so eyes are peeled (I hate that expression) for #8.

I'm sorry but I can't remember whom it was that bought us a subscription to Parenting magazine. Thanks for that. There's been some helpful articles in several issues.

But... there is something about it that really pisses me off.

The magazine isn't geared towards parents, it's written for mothers. There are pages about the baby's health and then the mom's health. Ones with baby toys and mommy toys. And more than one article about what to do when your husband doesn't do this or that (these often contain a "men... what are you gonna do" vibe). I understand that the way things have been it is generally the woman that is the primary caregiver to infants. When only 1 of us has breasts that produce milk, it's just going to happen that way. And beyond that, child-rearing has been for centuries seen as "woman's work." The man goes out and earns the living and the woman takes care of things back home. But that's all changing. In my circle of friends, there are quite a few dads, and all of them are pretty actively involved in raising their kids, even the infants. So yeah, maybe Parenting is just marketing to the people who will buy their magazine; there are Dad-centric websites but I haven't noticed any Dad mags. But I'm a parent too (damn it!) and if you're not going to have anything in your publication aimed at the dad, then you should call yourself Mothering.

Along those lines, I also realized I don't want to be called Mr. Mom because I take care of the boy when I'm not working. It's a demeaning term for an outdated (what's up 1980s?) way of thinking. I'm the Dad, ya see? Daddy-o, El Dadarino if you're not into the whole brevity thing.

I know I posted it to Facebook, but if you missed it there, he's starting to stand up on his own and has taken a few steps on his own here and there. The first time he took a couple of steps on his own he knew he had done something special. He got very excited, yelling and shaking his fists with a big smile.

Finally, any tips on this problem would be greatly appreciated. Usually when one of us is home alone by ourself with the boy we'll use the restroom with the door open. He's not cut off from us and we can at least hear what he's doing. But now that he's getting all mobile, he's coming right up to the toilet while I'm standing there peeing. I try to block him out with my legs as best I can and still hit my target, but he's a wily one and now knows to try and outflank me. And he's reached down into the bowl once and wet his hands. Thankfully, the water at the time was pure. And I'd rather not sit if I don't have to.

We're making Malcolm some iron-on onesies. I found a few images on the interwebs but we currently only have 3 onesies. Check out the images and note your top choice in the comments. We'll take the top 3 and make Malcolm even more awesome this winter.

2 versions of the Radiohead bear to choose from. Pam likes the one with the eyes but I like the plain one.