Gah! So sorry, but we are experiencing some technical difficulties with our dashboard this week! I’m going out of town tomorrow (6/25) for one of my close friend’s weddings, so I’ll take care of this when I return and will immediately post WSDW 6/24 and #SummerofDad when the issue is resolved.
Thanks for understanding!
This week marks the first week of ten weeks of travel, as we’re now on the road in Philadelphia. It also marks the first week of mostly primary parenting. I say “mostly” because my wife will still be helping out a ton, as will her parents for about a week, and of course the legions of babysitters across the land that will hang out with him. But I’ll be the primary, as Jenny is working on a bunch of really cool projects both on the phone with her agents and directors, and on the ground.
Speaking of which, we just found out that we’ll be covering a new piece of ground, as she was selected for another development project, this one in Chicago. The only time available to do it was the two weeks between our time in Waterford, CT and Seattle, WA—which is exactly where it fits! So now we’ll be doing four playwriting development series in four states (but with only one toddler, thank god). Holy logistics, Batman.
Continue reading “#SummerofDad Week 4: Travel, News, and Food” »
So this picture has nothing to do with the title of this blog post, but Kyle (#SummerofDad) and his family met up with us in Baltimore for a little short visit to the Baltimore National Aquarium and I just love this picture! We are near the jellyfish sculptures where the Dolphin Experience is housed and the lighting was perfect… and I had to get a photo with these two little babies together, meeting for the first time! Aren’t they cute?
So I am posting a little late – time has really gotten away from me these last two days. I could’ve started writing a few days ago, which would’ve been in the best interest of time considering at any given day I may not get the chance to write up a post. But I didn’t.
Very exciting/busy/stressful/confusing/overwhelming things happening over here! I had an interview yesterday with Chamberlain College of Nursing, for a position as a Visiting Professor. I met with the Dean of Faculty and the President of the nursing school. Both were so nice and welcoming, and I wowed them enough that today I got a call from the recruiter and found out I got the job! So that starts the second week of July. The first couple months they just need someone to fill in with their nursing simulation lab working on health assessments for the nursing students and then after Labor Day, I’ll lead my own group of nursing students throughout an 8-week course on inpatient units taking care of patients. Yay, teaching baby nurses! Continue reading “What’s She Doing Wednesday: “Bye Daddy”” »
June 21st marks the first day of Summer for 2015, but after Memorial Day a couple weekends ago, pool season is already under way. So what better timing than now, to address water safety? (for a quick jump to info on what to do in the event of drowning, click here)
Almost every new parent wonders “what should I make sure I’m doing?” when it comes to introducing your baby to water, and even if your baby already loves the water, you still want to be sure you’re doing all that you can to ensure your little ones’ safety. As fun and as peaceful as the water can be, it’s also a very dangerous and potentially deadly environment for your child if you don’t take certain precautions.
Water safety is important from birth up until childhood, so let’s brush up on some important things to know. Continue reading “Water Safety for your Water Baby” »
The third week has brought some unexpected, but mostly good, developments. We were supposed to travel back to Baltimore earlier this week after staying with my family, but the night before our flight Gabe came down with some sort of illness. Jenny and I jumped into family-planning-logistical-mode (oh, the fun), and we quickly set up a doctor’s appointment for the next morning, called our pediatrician’s answering service, discussed changing our travel itinerary, and madly Googled his vague symptoms.
He had a fever and was irritable, but no other body systems seemed to be an issue. Was it teething? He is pushing out a molar. Was it an ear infection? He was grabbing at his ear, but he does that when he’s tired. Was it some awful, rare thing, like a twist in his intestinal tract? He was grabbing his tummy and rolling around a lot. After a dose of infant Tylenol and a lot of shushing and cooing, he finally fell asleep. He awoke at night several times with more discomfort, but when I awoke in the morning (at 0830!) he was lying in our bed between Jenny and I smiling up a storm like nothing had ever happened—like the previous night was some hallucination on our part.
Continue reading “#SummerofDad Week Three: Unexpected Events” »
Enjoying the contents of her Busy Bag!
This past weekend we went to Richmond, Virginia (about 2 hours south) for a family funeral. I searched and searched for a hotel that was a “suites” chain so that at least we would have a separate bedroom from the living room. That way we could put her to bed in her pack and play in the bedroom, close the door, and hang out in the common area. We settled on a Homewood Suites, located about 20 minutes away from the funeral and it was worth every penny (not that it was pricey). It had the pack and play, free hot breakfast, and an outdoor pool. As mentioned in last Saturday’s post (Traveling with your Sprout), all these are so beneficial when traveling with a baby or toddler, so we were thankful to have found a place that had all of these features, not inconvenient to the funeral’s location. Did I mention my parents booked the suite next door? That made things even better! We were able to score a night out on Saturday, to meet up with my childhood best friend. Plus they got some extra Jia time that they wouldn’t have had, had we stayed in separate hotels. Continue reading “What’s She Doing Wednesday: Toddler Trip Success!” »
After our son was born my wife and I welcomed him into the world and into our hectic lives. In the past year, from June 2014 to June 2015, my son has been on 7 road trips, 4 flights (2 of which were cross-country), and a half-dozen or so day-trips. He has literally traveled every month of his life, and because of this he’s been to 12 states and the District of Columbia. And he’ll add another two states this summer (Washington and Oregon). Most of this travel has been to see family and the rest is for my wife’s work (which is necessary due to my hectic life as a grad student and lack of nearby family).
Traveling with an infant—especially the first time—strikes fear in the heart of most parents. You have no control over your surroundings; comforting routines are strained or broken; you’re dealing with multiple (probably complex) logistics; and you probably forgot something essential for yourself or your child at home. People without kids will probably give you wide-eyed stares and offer you luck like you’re going to face some gauntlet involving minotaurs and mazes. Luckily it’s not that bad, especially if you plan accordingly and are in the right frame of mind. Continue reading “Traveling with your Sprout: Pointers from a Wanderlust Parent” »