Hard to believe that my paternity leave is almost over. Where has the time gone?
Mostly, I’ve been spending time with the boys. (It still so strange to talk about “the boys” or “the kids.” You know, it’s plural. There’s more than one of them.)
Patrick’s been changing day by day, and I’m glad I get to see that. He’s now developing a routine. During the day, he’ll eat, be happy and content for an hour, start getting fussy, and then go to sleep — well, he’ll go to sleep if he being walked in the stroller, or bounced in his car seat. He doesn’t stay asleep too long while stationary during the day. His naps will be anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Patrick tends to have his last feeding at 9:00, and then he gets his longest sleep of the day, waking up at 1:00 and 4:00. At night, he wakes up to eat and then falls right back to sleep, just like Alex.
Patrick’s more willing to use a pacifier than Alex ever was, but it’s still actually pretty rare for him to use it. He’s also more likely to find and suck on his fingers than Alex was.
Since returning from Maine, Alex’s has decided to enter the Terrible Twos with full force. Temper tantrums are pretty common (1-2 per day), and Molly and I are still learning how to parent him in those moods. Luckily we’re both keeping our cool, even if Alex isn’t, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t wear us down and frustrate us at times. At least Patrick’s crying is fairly predictable (now that he’s entering a routine) and pretty easy to soothe.
On the plus side, when Alex is having fun, so’s everybody.
The most reliable way to get time for myself is to drag myself out of bed early (between 6 and 7). Since returning from Maine, Alex has also turned into a sleepyhead. Before, he was up around 6:30 every morning. The past two weeks, he’s been up at 7:30 or 8:00. Patrick’s not up until 7:00. If I want quiet time, I have to stay up late (like I am now) or get up early or both. The plus side of getting up early is I’ve seen some spectacular sunrises. The downside is I’m really tired!
Well, even if I’m going to be tired, I’m going to do everything I can to enjoy this last week focused on family.