Baby #3

So, the birth of our third child means that Owen has now graduated from Older Child to Oldest Child, while Isla has now been saddled with a chronic case of middle-child syndrome.

Visit my wife’s blog post for all the details about our latest baby, Emmett Porter, by clicking this link.

This is Emmett

I’m taking four weeks off of work to stay home with Jennifer and the new baby. My tasks as a postpartum mid-husband have consisted largely of providing meals for Jennifer and our non-nursing kids, as well as keeping up with the dishes and the laundry. The meal department has actually been easier than you might think because Jennifer prepared and froze several meals before the birth and left instructions on the fridge for me. So mostly I’ve just been reheating. A couple of people have given us some pre-made meals, as well, and Jennifer’s brother and his wife brought over some dinner from Buca. So, I’ve actually enjoyed getting the food ready. The biggest concern has been making sure that we eat re-heated items before they go bad.

Sometimes, I’ve had to prepare meals with Emmett in my arms. I’m quite proud of my ability to perform household chores while holding an infant, but there are occasions when I have to put him down. Just the other day, I laid him on the couch. Here you can see Emmett sleeping on the couch while his sister snuggles up to him:

Another lucky-for-me aspect of my paternity leave, is that Owen is still in school. I took him to school on his first day back, and he brought with him a 5×7 photo of his new brother (the same photo as shown at top). His teacher allowed him to put the photo on the overhead projector so the whole class could see it and Owen had the opportunity to regale everyone with a detailed description of Emmett’s birth. Or maybe he just told everyone Emmett’s name and birthdate.

After dropping Owen off at school that first day, Isla and I came back home and, for some reason, I just thought she was so cute while walking with her umbrella, that I just had to take a picture. So, here you go:

Incidentally, when Emmett finally attends his first day of Kindergarten, Isla will be starting 4th grade and Owen will be a 9th-grader.

Just for fun (and just because I happen to remember all this at the moment), I thought I’d make a quick list of the last bits of entertainment I consumed prior to becoming father to Emmett. I meant to do this prior to Owen’s birth, but I forgot…

Last complete book I read before Emmett’s birth: The Book of Numbers
Last movie I saw: Kill Bill, Vol. 2
Last movie I saw at the theater: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Last complete TV series I watched: Community
Last TV episode I watched: “The Wedding (Part 1)”
Last complete album I listened to: Songs of Bo Redoubt
Last song I heard: “O Mary Don’t You Weep”

Emmett’s birthday also marks the only time I went to work the same day my kid was born. I was at work for close to three hours when Jennifer called and asked me to come home. Owen was born on a Saturday and Isla was born just after 5:00 in the morning, so going to work on either of those days really wasn’t an option with those two. In fact, I even worked from home for a few hours prior to Emmett’s birth. All in all, I logged something like 6 hours of work that day, and he was finally born when less than 10% of the day remained.

In the meantime, it’s amazing to think that Jennifer and I now have three kids. Wow! I am now the father of three children! Three! Do you know what this means? It means that the number of children I’ve fathered is now equal to…

-The number of cups of coffee I have consumed in the past 15 years
-The total time, in minutes, that I’ve played Candy Crush
-The number of times I have verbally recited the Pledge of Allegiance
-The number of complete calendar years I have ever gone without wearing a necktie
-The total amount, in grams, of baby formula I have ever purchased
-The number of meals I have eaten from McDonald’s since 2002
-The number of times I’ve seen the Pacific Ocean
-The total amount, in dollars, that I have ever spent at Wal-Mart
-The total number of times I have worn a costume for Halloween
-The number of times I have been the Best Man in a wedding ceremony
-The number of complete cigarettes I have smoked
-The number of times I’ve been laid-off
-The number of birthday presents my parents and grandparents have ever given me
-The total number of coffee makers, snow blowers, smart phones, lawnmowers, and new cars I have ever purchased
-And the number of times I changed a diaper before my first child was born
…combined.