You’ve been tagged!

One of the first things that happened after Little Mango Owen was born was that all three of us (CG, Owen and Myself) were given a matching set of numbered bracelets, as a security measure.

When driving home from the hospital one night I couldn’t help but look at it and think “Hey look! I’ve been tagged by the Wildlife society of Parents!!``

In a funny way, that little bracelet really kind of set it home that I was a father now. And I had the Bling to prove it. It may be plastic, but its still bling!

Here he is!

So after all this time, here is the Mango Himself. Let me introduce Owen Mango to the Cyberworld.

I am too happy and proud to write anything at this time. More to follow when I can!

Bassinets and Cats

CG had her Baby Shower today. I think it is official. There is now more baby stuff in the house than grown-up stuff.

This evening we assembled a bassinet (did you know babies don’t use a crib for months…I didn’t!). The battle over keeping the cats out of it promises to be long and difficult. Our old cat (Ayla) has been trying to claim it. The younger one named Dharma (affectionately known as “Dum Dum”… because she is) sniffed around but ran away in fear. Apparently bassinets are scary.

Of due dates and men...

Baby due dates are a strange thing.

There are doctors who have devoted their lives to the practice of delivering babies and yet, they can’t give you a reliable arrival date.

Our little mango was originally dated for May 25th. Along the lines we have heard June 2nd as well as June 10th. Now, par tof my job involves planning delivery dates and if I ever came up with a range like that, well, lets just say that I would have TONS of spare time on my hands.

Anyway, this weekend brings our first potential delivery date. Welcome to the Home stretch!

I hope to be able to blog here a bit more in the coming days (assuming CG isn’t in labour of course) now that the house has been “baby-fied” its coming down to the waiting game.

Anytime Mango. Daddy’s ready.

MUCH Assembly Required

Who knew that babies required so much assembly?

Now of course, most of the organization of bones and cells is going on in CG’s womb seems to be pretty much an automated process. I am basing this on assumptions. I haven’t come across CG sitting in deep concentration and muttering, “Fingers go here”… so I will say that it is a pretty safe assumption.

The assembly part comes with the baby Paraphernalia. Between all the furniture, new closet doors, a ceiling fan, baby seats, baby toys and strollers I’ve started to feel like a kinder toy tester. Today I hope to accomplish the Car seat / stroller system, the basinet, installing a new closet shelf and making room for the arrival of the crib.

Then, comes the problem of what to do with all that cardboard…

Still Waiting...

It has been a while since I posted. Currently we are still waiting For the Mango. A lot has been going on. I will summarise and try to follow up on some of these in later posts… when I’m not so tired. So here is a point form summation of the past few Months

•  I have rearranged the house. Basement has become office space. 2 office have been turned into the Mango Grove (“Baby’s Room”) and real guest room. When you have a guest AND Baby room there is no denying it… Its time to grow up! Pics of the new rooms may follow.
  

•  CG’s belly has grown. Its AWESOME to have a nice baby belly in the house. I will miss it
  

•  The mango kicks. A lot. Not only do we see kicks, but we can also see the movement of limbs! It’s like Alien… but not as freaky and without Sigourney Weaver (CG is WAAAY hotter anyway!)
  

•  We have cut our CD collection down to the bare minimum. We had somewhere approaching 2000, I think. After sorting through and realizing that many of them were really unnecessary CG and I made a trip to the used record store. It was cathartic.
  

• The funny part was how many CD;s CG and I each assumed belonged to the other partner. I don’t know where many of those discs came from. The only thing I can think of is CD hanky Panky while CG and I were sleeping. I don’t know how to tell the boys from the girls, but I’ve got my eyes on the Miscreants now!
  

•  I have assembled the Mango’s furniture. I never want to assemble Ikea furniture again.
  

•  Ever notice the guy in the Ikea assembly instructions looks like the old National Film Board short films of the French line drawing man who would walk across the screen after the Polka Dot Door? That one is for the Canadians who may stumble across this. Peace. Represent.
  

•  We have started and completed our Lamaze course. Some of the films we watched made me feel like Alex in a Clockwork Orange undergoing the Ludovico Treatments. One video had at least 6 childbirths…. And I thought Grade 10 health was bad!
  

All in all the past while has treated me very well indeed. We are very close to the Mango’s arrival. We have been given due dates that range from May 25th to June 2nd. We have been quoting the 2nd, but either way we are in the home stretch. It has been a great ride so far!

The All-in-one Family

I was struck by a thought recently.

I have come to the realization that right now, at this time, my whole family comes in one convenient package, with Mango residing in CG's belly. This will only last a bit longer, after which, moving my family around WILL require much more effort on my part, as CG is doing most (OK, ALL) of the work on that front. Nonetheless, a portable all-in-one family unit is a nice thing to have for nine months.