First Time Dad Experiences: Vacation

So after some hard work we decided that we needed a small vacation.  It would be the first real vacation that our little family of three would take.  I wondered how it would be when we had our little 6 month old baby with us.  So here is the list telling you what I learned:


1. Family Friendly helps but isn't necessary
I never liked the term family friendly because as Jim Gaffigan once said it usually sucks.   But I wanted to pick a location that I thought would be used to kids being around or crying.  This doesn't mean you can only vacation in places that have kids, but it does help.  I wouldn't bring my child to some ritzy high class 5 star hotel (first I wouldn't want to pay for something like that) and then not have anything for her.  The location had really cool kid stuff for Karis (esp. when she is a toddler) but when planning we made sure there were things for her to do.

2.  Make sure you have everything that makes home like home.
Our daughter needs a couple things to make her feel like she is at home base.  So we take her favorite stuffed kitty and her blanket, snacks all so that she feels like she's home.   Home is where the heart is....or at least where Miss Kitty and Blankie are.

3.  Request a crib...but don't be surprised if it sucks
So before we arrived at our destination we requested a crib.  It's important because where else is she going to sleep?  Not with us, I get beat down enough from my wife hogging space (let's just say I sleep vampire style so I don't take too much room).  Unfortunately the crib looked like it was out of the show Call the Midwife (oh gosh I'm spending way too much time watching shows with my wife) or out of WWII.  Had metal bars with white paint and a tiny mattress ants wouldn't be comfortable on.

4.  If you get sick on vacation...it sucks for the healthy person.
So I ended up getting sick on the second day of vacation with a really bad sinus infection.  I was dead to the world and in pain.  My wife was already awesome before this, but she really knocked it out of the park.  Cause even when your home it stinks, but when you are vacation and you get really sick its even worse.  You want to be home, your body hurts and someone else has to occupy the little one all day.


Being a dad is life in constant transition.  My girl is growing up so fast and I love every minute of it. So next time you go on vacation: plan and make sure you have all that you need and be prepared for almost anything!
The End~

First Time Dad Experiences: Illness

Soooooooo, the next couple of posts are essentially detailing what it is like when you have certain things happen for the first time.  Last time I talked about teething, which the great thing is that it is the gift that keeps on giving (we are going through it for a second time).  Todays post will be when your kid gets sick for the first time!

As you may already know (avid readers especially) our daughter is in daycare.  Our daycare is awesome: it has great teachers, great administrators and great location and facilities.  But quickly you learn that they are also prime locations for your little beauty to get sick.  Drooling, snotty, poopy animals lurk all over the rooms of these places (if you are a germaphobe you will pass out).  So it isn't whether your child will get sick, it is when.

Here are some things we learned for the first time:

1.  Your child is about 1000 times more miserable than you
Remember how much it sucks to get sick?  The aches and pain, the uncomfortable feeling that nothing is right in the world and you hate it?  Yeah now put that into a tiny body of someone who cannot speak English or convey how they really feel or what hurts without spitting.  Your child will be miserable and it doesn't matter if they have some sort of cold or type of thing that is small to us adults.  It sucks and your baby WILL let you know it.

2.  Get ready, you are about 99.9% away from getting sick!
Who says your child never gave you anything? Well more than likely you will get whatever it is your child has.  Our daughter had a cold and spread that thing throughout our family like fire to gasoline.  Funny thing is I just got over a cold a week before and boom second cold.  My wife even got hand, foot, mouth disease (your hands itch and your throat feels like you ate glass for lunch).   It is super rare for moms to get, but not in our house.  Thanks baby!!  Update: I am now on my second illness that I received from my baby in less than two months, right after I recovered from my own cold.  My wife got the cold first then I got it and was blasted with a sinus infection for two days of our vacation!
Just make sure you have some sick days saved up just in case you need to take them.  The hardest part about this is the reality that whoever is healthy will be doing the bulk of caring for your kid during this time.  As heroic as you want to sound about "even if I'm sick I will"....no you won't.  Best thing for you to do is rest, get healthy and make up for it with date nights and flowers.

3.  Your Baby will have Snot like You've Never Seen Before
So sure babies drool, they have snot come out of their nose, but not like this.   Your baby will become a factory of bodily fluids.  You will constantly have to wipe their nose and keep them dry.  In our case, our daughter hated every time we wiped her face so we basically put a bib on her to help catch the snot/drool combo.  It is part of the sick process, but just be prepared for how much of it ends up on your shirt, shoes, floor, you get the hint.


Next first time experience I want to cover: Vacations

Bye!