mars time

i've been given a tetanus shot that's good until august 2025, so if mars one isn't a scam then by the time i'm ready for another one there might be humans on the red planet.

last wednesday:

a long day with just the three of us. the only time mr smear rested was when he needed to be changed, and after we changed him he wanted to be fed and whenever he fed he pooped. slipknot - duality settled him down temporarily and he let us enjoy most of gd's amazing veggie ramen lunch while watching bits and pieces of star trek and mash and the 4400...

thursday:

2am semi-final fight.
ikea travel fail day, no sunscreen or shade, trying not to breathe concrete dust and impaling my foot on an exposed construction barrier, a worrying bus driver shift change with a route explanation

long shopping, last minute computer rescue after we learned that we didn't have the bin locations, taxi driver winning over delivery
foot treatment, new furniture start, star trek: the next generation and sore legs
a long couple of hours feeding and changing then passing out for another couple and waking up ravenously hungry and tiptoeing around the kitchen afraid to wake him

friday:

tears in the fabric of our universe. autopsy and resurrection. waking up to another day. cancelling the long drive for a shorter one to learn that for the past week mr smear has been exceeding the expected growth rate of 20-30g per day by 50g per day and we've gone from not feeding him enough to overfeeding.

a surprisingly successful urine sample* followed by a surprise guest with a dog at three weeks. the former was greatly appreciated, the latter not so much.

* i don't know if this is done in other countries, but i find that one of the strangest things we've been expected to do here as new parents is mailing a urine sample in an envelope.

walmart mission, falling asleep on the metro, big shopping and pushap and manual labour, getting a tetanus shot (falling asleep in the waiting room), desperately needing to rest but getting

saturday:

a long night of discomfort and wheezing and mucus and difficulty burping instead

sleeping late and waking up still feeling like i had a concussion
harry potter instead of crib construction

of course, the first laser technician to inform me that i've been listed for the wrong treatment - hence the less-than-impressive effect in the desired region beneath my chin - would be the technician performing what *should* have been my last treatment.

sometimes it's difficult to remember that it's impossible to tell how hygienic someone is just by looking at them. don't touch other people's children without their permission.

a good rest but then waking up to freak out about an ignorant breastfeeding consultant who might cause us trouble with social services - gd's doctor warned us about uneducated busybodies, and our reward for being honest about what meds gd's taking (prescription meds!!) is a request for a house visit, a blood test and a call to stop medicating for chronic (severe) neck and back pain. the stress caused by this idiot has (temporarily, fortunately) reversed the effects of the prescription meds she's been taking to get her breastmilk production back up.

rushing off to buy emergency formula and diapers; it appears that there's an eco-friendly / parent-friendly diaper service in montreal so i'll have to call and see what that's about.

sunday:

1-2am feed and change followed by a laundry run that served as a good excuse to do the fudgee-o / vanilla chai thing and leftovers.

4.45am literally jumping out of bed in physiological response to my wife's cry, finding myself immensely relieved to learn that the cause was a mouse running over her foot and not anything to do with our baby...

late start feeling guilty even on a sunday morning, our first proper outing! crib building and vomit panic and relentless diaper soiling
mom making a delicious dinner then feeding mr smear so that i could eat while gd rested

yesterday:

and then a midnight feed gone wrong after what's clearly been too much effort spent trying to breastfeed. did you know that lots of new parents develop relationship issues? we've learned that it really, really helps to be aware of them.

constipation, resolving breastfeeding consultant issues - turns out this vile nurse has been causing trouble for many parents and her clsc was already aware of it...

gd seemingly enjoying a vega smoothie, lots of child care and a visit to a new consultant, a shopping run, delivering a bassinet, a short nap and a visit to the clinic to be exposed to viruses and learn that the wound on my foot will take a few weeks to heal

a pharmacy run, returning home to colic and dinner and finally a couple of hours' rest

today so far:

a colicky night, waking up exhausted with my mind somewhere far, far away and trying hard to check off tasks from my list

the idea that today is my mother's last day before she goes back home makes us quite sad, she's been an enormous help in so many ways!