Owner: Raising Eli URL:http://www.raisingeli.com Join Date: Sun, 19 Aug 2007 19:59:26 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: A guide to all new parents especially dads who want to understand the day to day. A log of my son's activities from birth to present day and all the fun being a dad can be! Site statistics:Click here
Basic Summary - Eli 2007-08-16 08:44:00 I thought it would be nice to present just a basic overview of where Eli is in his development, some of his favorite and least favorite things. El is now 27 months old.
Eli is a dynamic little boy and completely rough and tumbled. He loves to run, jump, tackle, yell, climb and get in trouble. He can be shy around new people but warms up quickly. He is always smiling, happy, and likes to learn (as long as he teaches himself). He has a history of bruised legs, cut fingers and bumps on his head.
Eating & drinking
Eli eats lots of food. For breakfast he loves pancakes or french toast, bananas and yogurt. He only eats until he is satisfied and will not continue to eat if more food exists. He simply says all done and pushes the plate away.
For lunch he is usually at daycare so he will eat anything from ham & cheese to pizza to bologna. He loves chips and cheese doodles. Apples and most other fruits. He drinks applejuice, fruitjuice or water (he loves water with ice and always says C Read more:Basic
, Summary
Rather be doing 2007-08-15 18:27:55 almost anything at this point. I have been on this trip since Sunday and I still have two more days left. In this time I have been doing
basically nothing but sit in training, go back to the hotel, eat some dinner in my room and try to sleep. The sleep part has been the worst, not because the room is not nice, but because the bed is so horribly uncomfortable.
I have been told by someone who travels a lot that the Embassy Suites rooms are fantastic but all Hilton Hotels (which Embassy is one brand of many) is notoriously famous for having the worlds worst beds. Well I could not agree more. I can’t figure out what is so bad about the bed. Not sure if it is too soft, lumpy, too soft and lumpy, too hard, well crap it just sucks.
I have been tossing and turning all night, I even took a sleeping pill last night, which knocked me out, but the bed knocked me up. It was non-stop which left me like a zombie during training. Do you know what it is like trying to stay awake in a technical cl Read more:Rather
Discipline & Love 2007-08-14 08:02:47 When you love your child more than anything in the world how do you discipline them in a manner that does not make you feel bad? I have said this before, I was going to be a tough dad, one that stressed discipline and moral fiber but instead I turned into a bowl of mush.
Eli needs to start learning a little discipline but at what cost? To me, what he does is natural and part of the growing process, but there comes a point in time where you start molding them and their behavior for the better. I just hope it is not too late to start.
Everyone who knows Eli and anyone who reads this blog knows that from day 1 Eli was independent. He came out of the womb ready to do everything himself and this has only become worse. Now he does not want to listen or to be helped and is starting these temper tantrums that need to be stopped. Usually a 2 minute time out works but it is two minutes of torture to me. How can I get a backbone and do what is right when my heart breaks and all I want to do is hu Read more:Discipline
Terrible 2’s 2007-08-13 19:17:14 I am away from home on a business trip for training in Websphere 6.0 and my wife is at home with Eli who has literally entered his nastiest stage yet. He is a good boy, but his independence has entered an entirely new range of annoying. He will not, cannot, under any circumstance allow ANYONE to do ANYTHING for him anymore. This has spread to the diaper changing, clothes changing and story reading (he can’t read yet!!!).
Diapers
The diaper game is all about making him think that changing the diaper is the least exciting thing that he has around him. For example, it is amazingly ok to give him your watch or necklace to hold and he will allow the diaper change, but if you allow him the momentary thought that he can do it then you are already too late. He will kick, scream, cry, roll, get up and run, jump on the bed naked, work himself etc while he demands that ELI DO! ELI HOLD!
My god, converting Jews to Christianity is probably easier than getting anything done once Eli gets th
Big Boy Bed 2007-06-05 10:41:14 It is very hard to think of Eli as a toddler or big boy. To me he is my baby, and always will be but nothing can be more deflating to a person as being thought of as a baby. I try so hard to talk to him like an adult and treat him like one as much as possible while still babying him and giving him the cuddle and love he needs and deserves.
When Jodi and I decided to move Eli into a real bed we were doing so for many reasons. The most important one was Eli’s ability to throw his leg over the railing and try to climb out, but equally as important was his desire to be in a bed. At first we thought it was OUR bed he wanted, but instead it turns out he was content in any bed.
The first two nights have been good. We have broken away from his routine a bit by laying in the bed with him until he falls asleep which is bad. Tonight we are going to lay in bed, read him some stories, give him a kiss and leave the room. We will see how much he screams. Read more:Big Boy
Happy Birthday Son 2007-05-30 09:10:49 A little over two years ago my son Eli was born. What a turning point in my life, and the lives of everyone around me. Eli has been such a blessing to us. Funny, I always laugh at people who say that their baby has been a blessing but now I just typed it myself. Eli has been such a fun learning experience. We have had some hard times, and some really fun times but it is all just starting. Having a baby seems to have these really cool cycles and I thought it would be nice to point them out:
Hearing the news!
I still remember the night Jodi came to me to let me know she was pregnant. I was upstairs playing a game on the computer and she came in with a present. Jodi is not the type of gal who just gives gifts to me, unless it is a special occasion so I knew something was up. I opened the first gift and it was a book entitled “So You’re Going to be a Daddy”. I remember reading the title and being half shocked/stunned and I looked up. Before I could even register a tho Read more:Birthday
, Happy
, Happy Birthday
Being Away 2007-05-06 10:36:50 Nothing is harder than being away from your family for a long period of time. This latest trip to Arizona lasted 8 days and reminded me how special my family is. It is a double edged sword for me, I love my wife and adore my child but miss my family and friends. Sacrifice has always been my middle name and I have learned to live with my choices. This latest trip was just a reminder of how much I have given up, and how much I have gained.
I miss having friends and friendships. I was never one to go hang out each night with my friends but I developed friendships that can’t be replaced or ignored. My friendship with Andy, Eric and Tabitha are nothing short of truly special. These are folks that I can tell my deepest thoughts and although I might get ribbed a bit by them they accept me and treat me with respect. I just feel so at ease around them and being 3000 miles away makes life harder. They are great people, people I would love to have in my life on a regular basis.
I miss my
Fingerpainting 2007-03-29 18:09:32 Over the last few weeks I have felt like I have lost my touch with Eli. He is in a mommy phase but in the past when he was like this I have always been able to inch my way back in. This has not been the case and I grow more depressed each day.
I can no longer snuggle with Eli, read him stories, play with him, get tackeled or put him to sleep. He simply wants mommy. I wonder how long the stage will last because it eats me alive. Everything I do is for him and everything he wants is from mommy.
Today I decided to try to fight back a little. I went out and purchased fingerpaints and setup an area for Eli and I to paint. It started out really nice with each of us doing our own paintings which led Eli to help with mine. I decided to see if I could help him with his and he started saying the word share and allowed me to help. We rubbed our fingers all over three full sheets of fingerpainting paper before Eli decided he was hungry again and reach for a chicken nugget. I cleaned him up and all
Has it really been this long? 2007-03-08 10:00:10 With all the things that I have experienced with Eli so far I can’t imagine that I have skipped posting for so long. We are well into March and so many things have changed. Eli is doing wonderfully and has really shocked us on how how suddenly he has accelerated his learning as compared to other kids his age. Everyone always thinks that their kid is “smarter” than the other kids (especailly when you see them eating dirt at the playground), but Eli seems just to be ahead of the class in so many ways.
For example, Eli fully knows his ABC’s. No, I am not talking about the song, but actual letter recognition and sounds. You can ask him to bring you a letter and he does, you point to a letter and he knows what it is, and yes he can also say the ABC’s but loves to skip around sometimes. He has been doing this since 19 months. Like other kids his age, Eli knows the colors, and basic shapes but also knows hexagons, octagons, trapazoids etc. Is this advanced for a
Funny Ha Ha 2006-12-03 18:31:02 I am amazed at all the new things Eli does each day. From picking up new words each day to his amazing grasp of shapes and colors he just does something cool each day. This weekend Eli sat down and learned the following shapes: Square, Circle, Triangle and Octagon. Impressive? Well add colors to it: Purple, Red, Yellow, Green and then try to confuse him by altering the combination and he still understands.
Eli now walks around and says Purple and laughs. He brings you a shape and tells you what it is. Triangle, which more souds like iangle but I have the universal child/parent language converter installed so I understand. He is just showing signs of brilliance (yea I know, all parents think their kids are rocket scientists).
Eli has also learned how to dump, throw, toss, spill and destroy almost everything he touches. The scary part is his attitude when he performs these acts of evil. He laughs. He thinks it is the funnies thing and tries to repeat the action even though nobody else Read more:Funny
Vitamin Soda? Vitamin Water?? 2007-08-22 16:01:46 I recently read an article about vitamins being added to soda and thought that this was probably the most outrageous thing I have ever heard as a marketing campaign (next to Nicotine Water last year). I usually do not post on the crazy society we all live in but this is just crazy.
Show me the evidence that Vitamin
s are good for you. I used to work for a Vitamin company who had over 63 different brand names all under one roof. They marketed themselves in a way that NOBODY knew that the vitamins on the store shelf were all produced using the same formula, in the same warehouse and by the same chemists but under different names. I always thought it was disgusting that they ran this kind of fraud but maybe that is too hard a term.
We have vitamins in our water, specially branded so that a different colored bottle helps with memory, while others help keep you awake or your mood relaxed. Of course, most of it is mental with the amount of vitamins being added to these products so low in qua Read more:Vitamin Water
Crossed Legs & Sleeping 2007-08-20 15:55:21 I am not sure why this is happening but lately Eli falls asleep with his legs crossed. We always check on him before bed and uncross them but it is kinda odd. We are not sure why he does this and I wonder if this is just one of the many things I am not supposed to be worrying about.
Tonight we put him in bed, read stories, snuggled and played for a bit before leaving him around 8:30. He fell asleep at 10:50pm. This is the longest he has ever been up. He was so good though, staying in his bed and playing quietly. Maybe it was the late long nap or he was just not ready. I feel guilty for having him lay in bed for those two hours but as a parent I have to try to maintain a schedule. If I give in a few nights per week what is going to happen when he goes back to school next month?
Tonight might be the same situation. Jodi didn’t get him to nap until later than we wanted. I hope this is not a trend. Read more:Sleeping
Sesame Place - Day 2 2007-08-27 09:56:36
IMG_0134, originally uploaded by BlueK9.
The picture says it all. Eli had such a good time on the second day at SesamePlace
.Some kids are scared of giant characters walking around but not Eli, he wanted nothing more than to be face to face with Ernie, Bert, Big Bird, Grover and Elmo.
We decided to test Eli’s bravery from the moment we got into the park. The closest ride to the entrance is this massive river ride that turns the riders from dry to wet. There are nice sized drops in elevation and waterfalls that dump all over the riders who are sitting in a circular raft. From the moment you sit down you are immediately drenched due to drainage holes (more like flooding holes) that circle the base of the raft. I jumped in and Jodi handed Eli to me. He was geared up in a life jacket and didn’t seem nervous at all about the entire thing until I sat him on my lap and he got all wet. Immediately he said NO but it was too late, we were heading down and around the first be
All of a Sudden…Daddy is Chopped Liver 2007-08-30 05:26:35
Tea Cups, originally uploaded by Daddy
.
All of a sudden I am chopped liver in the eyes of my son. Since coming back from Sesame place a few days ago Eli has not wanted me like he did before. I am talking about a giant swing of behavior. For example, Eli during the Sesame trip only wanted to be held by me. If Jodi even attempted to do anything he would scream for me. Even when pushing the stroller it had to be me (unless he was sleeping). Now, he won’t even give me a hug and a kiss and is latched on to Jodi non-stop.
It is a really humbling experience to have this happen and I have a theory as to what triggered this. For the last few days Jodi has been busy with preseason soccer with the high school team she coaches. She has let her sister watch Eli, Poppy and a babysitter. Eli has been separated from her and had to watch her walk away leaving him with other people and he is not used to it again. This is going to make it hard to leave him at daycare again and brings back th Read more:hellip
, Liver
, Sudden
Parenting and Pot 2007-08-28 16:32:37
In an online article published by Rueters and MSNBC comes the discussion about smoking pot and what to tell your kids when they ask you about your drug use when growing up. I laugh at this because as a parent of a youngster I know he is going to ask…so what do I tell him? The truth? Lie?
The article also states that research has found that smoking 1 joint is as harmful as smoking 5 cigarettes. My question to whomever did this study is simple. When was the last time you sat and smoked an entire joint? When was the last time you chain smoked a pack of joints? How many times have you smoked two packs of joints in a day? Most people, and most occasional pot smokers will say, never because that is just not how it is done.
Pot smokers use pipes, bongs and other items of delight, the least effective is a joint. Why? Because you only need to take a hit or two to achieve the high you want. Why waste expensive plant when you can use a quarter the amount and get a better high? You don&rsq Read more:Parenting
Hard Parenting Issues 2007-09-03 11:30:45 Lately I have been witness to a lot of situations that force me to look deep inside myself and wonder how I would react to certain situations with Eli. I have seen everything from what I consider completely insane parenting principles to parents having to come to accept that their child is gay to rare diseases that can only result in death. In most cases I have watched these parents do the “right” thing while sadly, watched others do what I can only consider the “wrong” thing. But who is right? More importantly how do you handle these situations if they struck closer to home?
One recent scenario deals with a kid I know who I have suspected was gay for a very long time but never had any proof. Recenly the person came “out” to close friends and some family and has received what I can only consider unfair treatment. I am not an expert on anything gay, probably more homophobic than I care to admit and I am not sure if being gay is genetic, a choice or a Read more:Issues
, Parenting
Diaper rash solutions 2007-09-02 06:08:06 Dad’s change diapers, at least this dad does so what happens when you pull off the diaper to find a nasty rash? What do you do?
The first answer is to put those wipes down that you usually use. Those wipes, no matter how they claim to be for sensative skin, contains chemicals that are going to aggrevate the situation. Instead, get a soft cloth, wet it with warm water and clean the affected area.
Don’t believe me? Ask most pediatricians and pediatric nurse practitioners! Once cleaned, apply aquaphor to the area. Don’t over-apply it, just a light covering and put on the new diaper.
There are a lot of diaper rash creams out there, the two best are aquaphor followed by balmex. In my opinion aquaphor is easily the best choice but use what works for your baby.
Cheers!
Bernard Read more:Diaper
, solutions
5 Goals for Eli 2007-09-01 07:40:43 I have been thinking that it would be nice to come up with 5 goals to be reached for the new month for Eli. So for September here is the list:
Start Potty Training
Keep to Bedtime Schedule
Work on Simple Spelling
More Swimming Time
Listening to Mommy & Daddy
I know that sounds like a lot to achieve, especially the potty training but you have to start sometime…now seems like a good time! Read more:Goals
People I Visit 2007-08-31 16:01:12 I have recently changed the links around and lately have been paying a lot more attention to the the blog than in recent months. I have also branched out and took some steps to find some people like me who are proud to be a dad and who are also posting about the journey. For them, I have added a section called I read… and listed their blogs. I hope that these folks continue their efforts, not only in being a dad, but describing to the world what it means to them.
BLog on Dads (and moms!)
Bernard
More on Jena6 (Thanks Frank!) 2007-09-27 14:12:06 As I said in my original Jena 6 post that I must be missing something. Well I was right, I was missing a lot. Thanks
to a friend I have been educated (Frank
…I truly appreciate the info, what I have been reading has been leaving out almost everything you mentioned): Frank Says the following:
I’m confused?
White kid beaten almost to death?
When every report has him with not much more than a black eye and was able to attend an event the night of his “near death experience”.
Now, the true outrage.
I’ll give you a timeline as I’ve been following this since about January:
September 2006 -
a black student decides to sit under a tree that is frequented by white only students. Student is jeered and as a white group moves toward the tree, several other black students join the one under the tree and security breaks it up.
The next day, three nooses are found in the tree. Black students see it as a threat (eg. lynching) and eventually the three students who were responsible were
Lasik Surgery (P90X -restarting next week) 2007-09-25 17:26:13 If I type errors right now then forgive me. I am writing with a bit of a eye issue. I just had Lasik
surgery a few hours ago and wanted to describe the process while I still had it fresh in my mind. I guess the most important thing to say is that it worked. Although my eyes are completely hazy I can definately see without my glasses or contacts! What a feeling it is to be able to see!
So here is how the process started. A few weeks ago Eli broke my one pair of glasses. I went to the Stahl Eye Center near where I work and got my eyes checked, just to make sure that the diabetes wasn’t affecting my eyes and that my presription was the same. During that visit I asked the doctor if I was a candidate for Lasik and after numerous tests I was told that I was (it is a longer story than this but that is not important).
I discussed it with Jodi and told her I wanted to have the surgery done and she agreed. After more tests I was told I could definately have Lasik proceedure and I schedule Read more:Surgery
Sippy Cup & Tantrums 2007-09-23 16:12:32 We are having some “issues” with Eli lately. Things like him refusing to adjust to drinking out of a real cup, to him throwing tempertantrums at school. On the first issue Jodi is more concerned than I am, that is until today when I gave him a cup of water and he flat out refused to even consider drinking from it. He demanded a sippy cup. I eventually caved in because I wanted him to drink.
He does great with box drinks with straws and pouch drinks but we really need some advice on how to get him to drink from a regular cup. If you have suggestions, please post them.
As for the tempertantrums it is hard for to think of a solution because I am not sure I ever see him really throwing them. I will have to ask his teachers at school to find out what the scenario is so I can work on the issue.
Other than that, I am still sick with the crud moving from my head to my chest and lodging badly there. I hope I survive. I need to continue my p90x workouts but don’t have the ener Read more:Sippy
, Sippy Cup
Study Links Soft Crib Bumpers to Death Risk 2007-09-21 07:59:29 (This story has been copied from Fox News)
A new study finds that soft crib bumpers may actually do more harm than good.
In the study, which appears in the September issue of The Journal of Pediatrics, researchers reviewed three U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission databases for deaths related to crib bumpers and crib-related injuries from 1985-2005.
They found 27 accidental deaths reported by authorities of children up to 2-years-old that were attributed to suffocation or strangulation by bumper pads or their ties. They also found 25 non-fatal injuries in infants attributed to bumper pads.
Of the deaths in which there was a formal investigation, 11 infants likely suffocated when their face rested against the bumper pad, 13 infants died from being wedged between the bumper pad and another object and three infants died from strangulation by a bumper tie.
“Many infants lack the motor development needed to free themselves when they become wedged between the bumper pad and another Read more:Study
P90X Day of Rest 2007-09-20 23:00:30 Today is the day of rest, glad because I am running a fever and have a massive sinus infection. Feel like my head is going to explode. I need to be better for tomorrow night. I really don’t want to skip a day, that defeats the entire workout plan. I hate getting sick.
Jena 6? Anyone outraged? 2007-09-20 10:12:32 Jena 6..now I admit I have not been following this story so I MUST be missing something. I have been reading some very disturbing things about this case. I am totally confused. How does six black kids beating a white kid to the point of near death have anything to do with black and white relations and civil rights? If they are the kids who did the beating, they should be punished whether they are black or white. Why isn’t the white community going crazy about the racism shown by 6 black kids towards this white kid? Shouldn’t Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson be ashamed of this and be calling for the black community to end violent action against the whites?
A white kid gets his ass kicked almost to the point that he died. Six black kids (5 of them age 17, 1 of them age 16) are the ones who beat the white kid up. Reason for beating him up? I am not sure…maybe because he is WHITE? The judicial system tries all six blacks as adults. So the outrage is not that black kids b Read more:Anyone
P90X - Kempo X 2007-09-20 06:38:16 I was really afraid of the Kempo X DVD for the P90X. I was a student of Traditional Shotokan Karate for years so I knew the workout was going to be tough, but this was a ton of fun. I was able to do the entire 60 minutes without worry. The cardio part of it was hard but I already knew all the punches, elbow strikes, kicks and stances. Makes it easier when you know the fundamental moves of any workout before it starts. There isn’t that awkward how do you make your body move this way or that way feeling and delay (and frustration for that matter). I woke up this morning with a sinus infection and I am really tired. Tonight is either rest or stretch and I will probably opt for the stretching routing just to relieve the soreness.
ON the Eli front he is in a anti-daddy phase again. They never last long and I am persistant with my attention to him even though he pushes me away and says no daddy. Not sure why he does this, maybe because mommy was bad last night and fell asleep in his be
Feeling Guilty 2007-09-18 21:54:22 I feel guilty tonight. While putting Eli to bed I yelled at him because he kicked me hard in the nose. I scolded him and told him no kicking. He kicked me again, hitting me in the nose again so I yelled at him. I told him he was not being nice and he hurt daddy. I asked him to say sorry and give me a kiss which he did. I should have explained why it is not nice to kick and told him I loved him and really like when he listens and is a nice boy…but when it happened I was only seeing stars.
I feel guilty. I should never yell at him. He is too young to understand. Tonight, I am a bad dad. Read more:Feeling
, Guilty
P90X - Legs & Back 2007-09-18 21:39:58 I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate lunges.I hate
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