Nearing five months

Funny how time flies. Yesterday, my brother-in-law set off to Utah in order to prepare himself further to be a missionary in the Rosario, Argentina Mission. Won't see him for two years, and knowing my luck we won't get any mail from him for two months.

Mind you, the fact that our address is going to change doesn't help much. It wouldn't be a problem if we were going to relocate to the Tolley home, which we were toying with for some time, but something inside me screamed that living with your in-laws is the worst thing you can do for the health of your family. Emergency conditions aside, it is best to have your own homes. So as of 1 August, 2007, the Clarks will be in Millwoods. I don't know if we are going to move everything in one day, but we do get to take possesion of our basement suite that day. I really hope that we get more time, because I'm going to be streched thin with my new job as it is.

Oh, another thing I've been quiet about! My job oppurtunity with Telus! I had the interview yesterday, and they were checking references today. My application has not been completely processed, but I have been informed that the training will start July 31, 2007, and continue for 10 days. Or maybe it was eight. All I know is that I get the long weekend off. I really hope that this works out because I put in my two weeks notice at work yesterday. Hence, upon condition that I get this job, I will be working on the day we will be moving. I sense trouble. Why do this to myself you ask? Because I don't know exactly when the next hiring will take place for the position I applied. Possibly September or October, but I want to get on board now. I am putting a lot on the line here, because I also put in my two weeks notice already.

On a happier note, and more in tone with the subject of the blog, Rini has started eating solids. She has taken a liking to squash, proving that you can never know what your children are going to be like. Starting small, she only takes four or five spoonfuls at a time. She does like it though, and by "like" I mean she hasn't spit it out! Some of it winds up on her lips, due to the fact that she has yet to master the finesse of using your tongue to swallow, rather than lick stuff, like daddy's head.

That's a story for another day though. Mommy and daddy need sleepy time.

Baby's first summer

Last night, we had one of the hottest nights this year, and this was Rini's first exposure to a Canadian summer. Normally this only last for a couple of days, so I don't think we need to worry about it too much. Still, at 1 am last night, it was 33C in our apartment! I know this because of the keychain temp gauge I got at MEC. Handy little gadget.

The way that Caitlin finally figured out how to get Rini to sleep was to:
1. Strip her down to her diaper.
2. Dip her head and feet in a bathtub of cold water (The tub of water helped cool down the apartment a bit too).
3. Get a fan blowing directly at her crib on the highest speed.
4. Put a tray of ice cubes in front of said fan.
5. Dip a soother in the melted tray of ice cubes, and place in her mouth.
6. Stand beside the crib until she nooded off.

I was beyond tired, or else I would have helped.
The things you think of when you're a parent!

Our munchkin is growing so quickly!

It's amazing how quickly time flies. It seems like only last week we got home from the hospital with Erini in our arms, and now she's rolling over! It's crazy to think that she's four months old now.

And from the sound of things, not very happy right now...

Excuse me...

Water Girl

Rini had her first swim today at the Grant MacEwan Centre for Sports and Wellness. At first I wasn't sure how well this would work, but that was due to a lot of things. First, wearing a swim diaper and a swim suit. Not something she was used to, and we also put the suit on backwards. Oops! That led to a bit of crying, and she was a little uneasy about going into a big pool. After a bit though she was kicking around like crazy! We even spent a little time over at the hot tub. We just dipped her in, we're not that irresponsible to leave our daughter to cook in 40C water. Just a taste, in and out, but mostly on the steps.

I knew that swimming tuckered you out, but I had no idea what it would do for Rini. After she had her fuss getting changed, we put her in the stroller and she promptly slept for the next four hours!

In the mean time, I need to get to sleep, or I am going to be in attrocious shape for work tomorrow.

Father's Day

This is my first official father's day, and it's given me a moment to think about the previous twenty-seven to which I gave hommage to my dad. I'm still going to give him a call and talk to him, it is his day after all, buy now I have something to celebrate with him. I'm not the most experienced parent at this point, as my wife would be quick to second, but in the past four months my daughter and I have worked at establishing a bond. It's comforting to know that the emotional bond we have is reinforced by the sealing bond that my wife and I have to each other, our daughter, and any other children that will be born to us in the future.

The great irony to this is the thought that our screaming, squalling, and messy daughter will be with us for eternity. But with that we also have our cute, adorable, and peaceful daughter. Gotta take the good with the bad, and I suppose in the long run, it's all good.

It's odd that you develop a greater appreciation for your parents once you become a parent yourself, but that is probably one of the greatest things of God's plan for his children. Great joy is born from great sorrow, as is portrayed in the scriptures countless times, and is a contributing factor as to why a baby's cry is one of the most irritating and heartbreaking things to the human ear. Although Erini has not started talking yet, I'm sure my heart will melt the first time I hear her say, "Daddy" or "Dada" or whatever babbling I'll convince myself is speech that seems to resemble one of the many titles for a father. Just so long as she doesn't refer to me as a personal ATM, I'll be fine.

Or I might be like my father-in-law, who when his daughter got married, dressed up in a King Henry costume and recited the poem, "A Father's Lament," which he wrote himself, hence I couldn't find it on the net. I'll see if I can convince him to dig it up, but in summary, he goes to great length describing what he went through raising his beloved daughter, and how he never complained, until August 2, 2003, when his little girl got married.

Mood swings

It's amazing how this little girl, who is growing like a weed, can go from fussy...
to asleep in 10 minutes flat! Mind you, we have started to figure out the tired fuss from the hungry fuss.

Doing well, despite the lack of updates

Things get a little crazy when you move, but we didn't techincally move. We're just housesitting. It's just a little weird living in two places. I was getting used to living with a baby, but then we have a dog to look after, who likes to lick my hand or arm, whatever is hanging out of the bed at 6:30am.

On the plus side, we have no neighbours beneath us to get irritated when I play DDR. And I also don't need to worry about waking up Rini, since the PS2 is set up in the basement, and she sleeps on the top floor. No worries! She sleeps like a rock though.

Hard to believe that the little girl is now three months old! She's almost exactly 24" and she weighs 11 lbs 9 oz (5.26 kg). I need to get some new pics, so I can display her hair that is starting to turn a very cute shade of red! I was pleased as punch that her eyes were blue, but I didn't think much about the hair colour. Probably because mine is falling out!

We're going to Rini's second dance tonight, but I don't think she'll see as much action on the dance floor. She can hold her head up, but she's not crawling, let alone sitting up by herself.