The Daily Routine!

I'm reminded on a daily basis how much taking care of Logan is like following the list from the film 'Night At The Museum' starring Ben Stiller.

1. Wake up to the sound of "DA!"

2. Depending on the time, move Logan to the big bed, hope that he falls asleep on Mommy's pillow, try to catch a few more ZZZZZZ's.

3. If Logan is awake, he'll probably need to be changed. If the diaper isn't too bad, wait on it as he'll need to be changed soon & why waste another diaper?

4. Have the plastic bag ready for when he does need to be changed, as it may be toxic.

5. Be sure to clean Mr. Pee-pee. This makes Logan laugh. Not sure if he's just ticklish or he's laughing at me.

6. Give Logan his vitamins AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. The fluoride in the vitamins will bond with calcium, so don't give him milk, cheese, yougurt or any other dairy product for at least an hour afterward. The same time frame applies if he has any of the aforementioned things before the vitamins.

7.Logan may or may not want to eat at this point. Often times "PLAY!" is the first order of business on his personal agenda. If so, prepare breakfast while he busies himself with his toys.

NOTE: Logan doesn't sleep, he recharges. Where as most adults need a caffeinated beverage or three to come to a functional state, Logan does not.

Additional Note: UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES IS LOGAN TO HAVE ANY CAFFEINE. PERIOD.

8. Now that Logan is fed, the following tasks should be done in order:

* Check again to see if Logan needs to be changed. Refer to steps 4 & 5.
* Have Logan assist in picking out his clothes for the day if Ma hasn't already done so.
* Logan can help in removing his jammies. He has discovered that he can use his thumbs for this task. Other animals are jealous, mostly because they don't get to wear jammies. Oh, and because they don't have thumbs too.
* Once the jammies are removed, it's time to "lotion the baby." This is not a euphemism. Logan gets skin lotion twice daily. He likes to get Da lotioned too. Hard not to get some lotion on one's self as this often turns into a Wrestlemania event. It would be cool if it were two lotioned babes, not so cool when it's you & Logan.

* At this point, Logan can help in getting himself dressed. PLEASE NOTE, make sure to consume sufficient caffeine so as not to get the lotion & dressing steps backwards. Just saying.

9. OK, time to brush Logan's teeth! He likes to help with this task as well, which involves him moving his brush in his mouth, constantly pointing out that his brush is "YELL O!" and chomping on it. Apparently, he likes the taste of toothpaste. Take over at this point or you will be in the "baff oom" for a long time.

10. Don't forget to floss his two front, top teeth. Yes, Logan gets flossed.

11. Somewhere amongst all this, Logan has vision, speech, and direct instruction therapy sessions. He has a total of 4 sessions spread out over Monday, Wednesday, & Thursday. Please make sure that at the very least, he's not odoriferous. The therapists are under specific instructions, that if he should become, shall we say, "less than socially acceptable to those of us without sever sinus conditions," to alert you IMMEDIATELY. This just makes his little butt easier to clean as opposed to him playing & sitting for any length of time. Quickest caught, easiest cleaned.

This usually comprises the morning routine. Try to include the dusting, vacuuming, laundry, and general tidying up in this routine. Involve Logan whenever possible. This is not to say that we are training him as a domestic, but more to introduce as much language to him as possible.

Congratulations! If you've made it this far, it's probably time for lunch! Please don't forget to feed yourself as well as Logan. Taking care of him becomes rather challenging should you pass out from hunger or low blood sugar. I might also note that your safety cannot be accounted for, should you let him run amok while you are examining the inside of your eyelids.

That concludes the morning portion of the list. Nap time will be covered in the next installment.

Incidentally, regardless of the fact that a parallel has been drawn between this routine and 'Night At The Museum' (Legal note: For parody purposes only!) any parallel drawn between Logan & Dexter the mischievous monkey is completely at the discretion of the reader and we can by no means be held responsible.

Logan is Learning SOO Much, So FAST!

I am very proud of our son! Everyday brings new words that he's beginning to learn on his own. This of course means that I have to be VERY CAREFUL as too what I say. I remember a line from one of Mr. Bill Cosby's comedy routines where he wondered if his children didn't think him a moron due to the fact that he couldn't complete a sentence. For example, "Son of a _____!" or "Mother____!" or "You little____!"



My favorite utterances have begun to resemble the under the breath mutterings of one Mr. Yosemite Sam.



The reason I mention these two things in conjunction is due to one of the things that Logan has learned of which he is very proud; he knows the difference between "off" & "on" with the lights and is able to flip the light switch and verbalize the status of the light. Of course, the only light he can reach in the condo is the one in the "baff room," another word that he is getting better with.



Wait for it......wait for it.......



So when does Logan like MOST to demonstrate his light-switching prowess and announce the status of the bulb? When I am, shall we say, indisposed in the "baff room" and unable to stop him.



As I sit in the dark, all I can say between cartoonesque mutterings is "That's my son."

Now I know why they call it Labor Day!

What a busy weekend!

Working backwards, starting from this morning, I learned a couple of things that I would like to record for posterity.

I learned that I do NOT like the Playdough Fun Factory.  Sure, Playdough is fun, but the Fun Factory is a pain to clean.  Personally, I think its's a plot to make you buy more Playdough!  The stuff gets stuck in all the nooks & crannies of the toy and is impossible to clean completely.  I swear I can feel the containers get lighter each time I take the stuff out for Logan to play with!  

While on the subject of Playdough, I also learned how to get it out of Logan's clothes.  He leaned on some that was on the edge of the table & got it embedded in the fabric of his onesie.  Said onesie is now in the freezer and shall remain there for about an hour or so.  When the Playdough freezes, it should be easier to remove from the fabric.  I'm told this trick also works well on gum.  A note of caution, if your child gets gum in his or her hair, PLEASE DO NOT NOT NOT stick the child in the freezer.

Yesterday was Kat's first day back to school.  I was out cold when she left, so sadly, there is no picture of her going off.  Just as well, I'm sure she was not thrilled.  Logan spent the night with Gr'Ma & Gr'Pa so that I could start back with my knee therapy again.  I want to keep the knee in shape as Logan is only getting bigger and faster.  I'll be a monkey's uncle if I can't keep up with my sonny boy!  

I got a few things done around the house, but neglected to make the bed.  Kat was not pleased.  Now, maybe I'm just being typically male, but what's with making the bed?  I like to just get into bed without feeling like I'm in an institution.  Couple this with the fact that I'm 6'5" and hate the covers being tight around my feet, and I'm not making the bed.  I've been told by several women that they can't get into a bed that's not made and that it should look nice.  Look nice to whom I  have to wonder.  I'll have dinner ready, the kid fed and taken care of, but I cringe when it comes to making the bed.  Sorry.

So, Logan got picked up from my folks house around 3:45.  Made it a quick pickup much to the surprise of my folks.  Didn't want to linger, as I had things to do.  Ellios pizza, jazzed up for dinner, spent a little time with the wife & son, then it was off to the movies!

Tuesday is "Free Movie Day!" at the local Clearview Cinema.  Kathy usually doesn't go, either because she doesn't like the same movies I do or when school is in session.  I got 8 free tickets (I have a few cards from my friends) and ended up going with two couples we know,  Jay & Cindy and Frank & Denise.  The 3 extra tickets I had got given out to late comers at the ticket booth.  I like to surprise people I don't know with free tickets.

Anyway, we saw "The American" starring George Clooney.  To say the movie was slow would be an understatement.  107 minutes of my life gone. Violante Placido was the only real bright spot in the movie.  Since this is a "Family Blog" I'll refrain from saying why that was.  I guess I was most disappointed because I was expecting a lot more action.  Oh well.  Sorry Mr. Clooney.

Monday was spent at my parents house helping my Dad install a new awning on his RV.  The old one took on some water between the two plies of the fabric.  Since water weighs around 8 lbs/gallon, I can tell you that the weight that was hanging off the trailer when we were in South Carolina a few weeks back, was substantial.  I found the replacement awning online at Carefreeawnings.com and am happy to report that the awning is on and everyone involved still has all their fingers.   It was a pretty tough job, not carefree at all.  Found out Sunday that we'd have to drill out rivets.  Went to two MAJOR HOME IMPROVEMENT  stores that didn't have the right size rivets before finding them at Sears.  Spent the majority of the time on the roof of my Dad's RV feeding the new awning into the upper track.  Even got Kathy and my brother Brian, who showed up near the end at a somewhat late, but very beneficial time, to help.

Long story short, Dad has a new awning on the trailer, we had a nice family dinner for Labor Day, and everyone is still speaking to each other.  Logan ended up spending the night with Gr'Ma & Gr'Pa so I didn't have to drop him off before knee therapy on Tuesday.  All's well that ends well :)

As of Sunday, Doodletown is now on the list of places that Kathy and I have hiked.  I don't know if you can count it as a hike for Logan, as he was carried on my back for most of the trip.  Well Conan, that which does not kill you.....

It was a fun day spent with Jenn & Christian and Denise & Frank.  Mr. Junior Woodchuck Guidebook, AKA Frank, was very informative and his iPhone was helpful with navigating.  Yes, he has an app for that.

We had a great hike, learned a little history, had lunch by a nice waterfall, and took lots of pics.  I even dipped my toes in the pool at the base of the 10 Foot Waterfall.  Felt nice!  We plan on going back during the fall when some of the vegetation isn't so thick.  It might be easier to find some of the ruins and foundations then.

The sad part about Doodletown is that all these people were kicked off their land because of eminent domain, and the State never even followed through on the project they had planned for the land.  Shame that they were booted for nothing.

We capped off the day with dinner at Jenn's folk's home.  Mrs. Neri always puts out quite a spread. Almost had to roll me out of there.  Thanks Ma Neri!

Time for dinner! I made shake n bake pork chops & baked potatoes! Hit ya with the rest later!

The simplest things......

Logan is fascinated by the simplest things; splashing in his water table, picking up the cap from the soda bottle that I just dropped, playing with a flashlight with the curtains drawn.  I am fascinated by Logan.  So that means that I am fascinated with someone who is fascinated by simple things.

The mind boggles with the implications!

Gangsta Dad!

Not much to say at the moment, quiet weekend here, but I did find this cool vid!  Think the Dad's will 'preciate it.  Peace out Cub Scout!

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/81024528/

Things that make you go.......

So Kat woke me up this morning saying something about Tiger being in town & that she wanted to get on the road early.  Needless to say, I went from zero to WIDE AWAKE in record time.  Turns out that Mr. Woods is supposedly playing golf in Paramus, NJ and she needs to get to her tutoring session early in order to avoid traffic.

She called me later to say that her concerns were unfounded and that she had no traffic problems.  I still wonder if I need to keep an eye on El Tigre.

So Logan has been lotioned, dressed, had his language session, "helped me" put laundry on, had his vitamins, eaten lunch, and after a 2 hour battle, is finally napping.

Anyone that tells me being a stay at home parent is easy might just get put down for a nap themselves.

As of late, I have come to realize that I have been "labeled" as a SAHD.  That's a Stay At Home Dad, according to one of my new favorite blogs, RebelDad.com.

Not sure if I like being labeled, feel like it some how negates me, but I digress.

Time to get some other house husband stuff done.  Kat was setting up her class room and is on her way home.  I'm thinking I'll show her who the Tiger is.  ROAR! 

Timing is everything!

So Logan has started to tell us when he needs to be changed.  He pats his diaper when he wants a new one.  We want to get him potty trained and Kat tells me this is a good sign.  Apparently, it's a matter of timing.  If only he could tell us BEFORE he's stinky. 

Yesterday was very overcast, but at least we got a break from the rain.  Logan & I were sitting outside playing with his sidewalk chalk until it got a little breezy.  I decided to take him into the basement to draw on the concrete floor.  Kathy asked me what would happen to the chalk, since there would be no rain to wash it away.  I had to laugh and ask her "Who cares?" 

Logan has his speech and language session at the moment, which gives me a little time to get things done.  Time to refill the coffee mug and do laundry! Yippee :(