Diary of a Third Time Dad

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WEEK TWENTY-THREE - AUGUST 2002

Cats Beware!

Joshua has discovered the cats. He's also discovered they have lots of fur that he can grab on to. Combine this will the ability to roll over, and the cats now have a new predator to watch out for.

We weren't sure if the cats were going to stand for this new source of "affection" (from Joshua's point of view. From the cats' point of view you could call it annoying). And sure enough, they didn't take it lying down. Out came the claws and the cats quickly defended themselves, thankfully without drawing blood.

First water.

Feeding Joshua water for the first time was a blast! The confused, yet intrigued expression on his face after his first sip was priceless. Be sure the whole family is around for this moment for your own kids. Nobody should miss it.

Flirting at the restaurant.

A couple times each month Cheryl and I enjoy a dinner out alone. Of course, to us "alone" means without our two older kids, but still with the baby. The little guy used to sit quietly or sleep during these nights out, and we could enjoy a long, quiet dinner. Now, he's way too active and restless to happily sit still in our arms for two hours while we eat. We found a good solution. The other night when he got fussy, I held him against my shoulder and showed him the people sitting behind me. And since he's so cute (genetics, you know) the people were all too happy to engage Joshua in conversation and a smiling contest. This kept his attention for a good 15 minutes while Cheryl and I got to eat.

Super teething.

Joshua started randomly screaming in agony. Out of nowhere he will just scream out for several minutes. He even started doing this in his sleep. As I wrote a few weeks ago, it's no wonder parents are worried that something else is wrong besides teething at this age. I think that in general parents don't have to be worried as long as the fussiness isn't sustained, and baby has some happy moments every day. But if in doubt, call your doctor for your 5-month ear check.

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