A new routine We’re getting the hang of it. At least for the moment. Something new comes every day, but we’re rolling with it.
I’m back at work. Working from home has advantages. I help with feedings and changings and soothings, but Janice is taking on the larger share. I take Baby H as often as I can during the day. Fortunately, she sleeps in the front carrier.
Nights are difficult, but getting easier.
We’re taking it day by day. Nights six and seven were tough. Baby H wanted to eat every hour, so Janice and I alternated 15 minute naps between feedings. The day feedings spread back out out, but naps couldn’t catch me up. I felt like the waking dead around the clock. All part of the experience.
Fortunately last night was a little more consistent, with feedings every two to three hours.
Swaddling Swaddling is frustrating and fun. I enjoy the challenge of making a good swaddle – tight on top, loose at the hips and feet. The art of swaddling has some loose ties to knot tying. It’s all loops and folds, with a good locking tuck to hold the thing together. The sailor in me rejoices.
My swaddles were hit or miss the first few days. The good held for hours, the bad failed immediately.
Jack is back Jack’s return home went better than I expected. There’s anxiety with introducing an infant to pets, especially to a pet that hasn’t met a newborn before. We took it in stages, first letting Jack play with Janice, then showing him some fragrant swaddle cloths.
He seemed to understand what was going on and was gentle sniffing Baby H. Now he follows us where we carry her and has a perpetual look of concern on his face.
We’re building a feeding tracker to replace the paper tracker sitting on the dresser. I’m sure there are many great apps that can do it better, but I’m here for the journey. Besides, an hour of building a day keeps the spirits high and the metaphors tight.
Eyes closed, head first, can’t lose.
Feeding 101 These are the highlights. Well… These are the things that stuck.
When breastfeeding, colostrum is produced first.
Wow.
That about covers it.
It’s one of those things. People say that it’s the greatest, most rewarding moment of your life, and they’re right. But it’s hard to understand until it happens. There isn’t much to compare. Now that it’s started, it makes sense.
They also say it’s the most tiring. They’re right about that, too.
I also didn’t anticipate (but really should have) how much there is to learn.
I learned to sail as a kid. I remember sitting hunched in a Sabot, head down, clutching a wooden stick and rope, my eyes darting between them as an instructor warned about the buoy ahead.
Thunk.
I kept sailing and with practice came names — tiller and mainsheet — and with names came an appreciation for what they do — steer the boat and adjust the sail — and with appreciation came using the tools to reach a goal.
Whenever I outline a presentation or document, I think, “Tell them what you’ll tell them. Then tell them. Then tell them what you told them.” My Sea Scout Skipper gives that advice in youth leadership meetings. It didn’t sink in as a teenager in the program, but it drives how I communicate now. Why risk your audience missing the point? Instead, dig a pit of success by gently hammering the idea into their head.
2022: A year in a line of unforgettable years. It was another step closer to normalcy from the pandemic lockdown, but self-imposed changes replaced the chaos of the pandemic in this busier-than-usual year. As a result, some of my 2022 goals followed the best-laid plans of mice and men, turned sideways by shifting priorities. I’m not bothered by those goals I didn’t accomplish, though. They made sense at the start of 2022 but didn’t fit by the end of the year.
Apartment 304’s 2021 year-end summit was a smash. We played games, and team bonded, and ate (and ate and ate) good food, but the strongest chord struck during team presentations. Spencer asked a question about goals for 2022, and I realized that I was so focused on company goals that I hadn’t thought about my own. Fortunately for me, Keith prepared a presentation on goal setting. I’ll follow his lead.
This site came about as a 2022 goal – specifically as a way to practice writing in the open. I look forward to the adventure.
In my professional life, I work as a software consultant at Apartment 304. Give us a ring if you’d like to chat about cloud architecture, DevOps, or engineering leadership.
When I’m not writing software, you might find me volunteering with the Sea Scout ship 936 Mariners, where the youth learn nautical and leadership skills, and I get to mess about in boats.