A Most Unusual Day

Right now things in this household are not as they usually are.

It started out normally enough. Mary biked to work this morning to teach voice lessons. I took Sofia to vacation bible school at Betsy and Doug's church. We had to pull Sofia out early though, because she had a dentist appointment. So while Sofi was at VBS for an hour or so, Isaac and I ran some errands: I purchased dates for next year (season tickets to the local university's theatrical productions), tried to get my wedding ring polished (the jeweler who made it is no longer there... I think the shop is a restaurant now), and cashed some checks at the bank. It was during this last errand that Isaac fell asleep in the car (thank God for drive thrus!).

We then picked up Sofi from VBS and headed to the dentist for her appointment. It's this dentist appointment that has made things unusual I think. Part of it is because this isn't a cleaning; it's to fix a cavity. Sofi had a cleaning a couple of weeks ago, and the dentist discovered two cavities. So she had one of them drilled and filled today. The other is scheduled for next week.

I was extremely nervous. Behaving for a cleaning is one thing. For a drilling it's another. I was thinking that perhaps they'd want me in the back with her, to keep her comforted, and I was worrying about Isaac and what he'd think of the dentist if he saw Sofi screaming and crying. I was debating a quick call to Ardelle to see if she'd watch him, so that Isaac wouldn't have to see his sister go through all this. But the receptionist at the front desk said things usually go better if the parent(s) don't come back with the child. So Isaac just waited with me out front, wandering in and out of the front door to occasionally look at the mopeds parked out there (he was very interested in them).

And in the end the receptionist was right. Sofi came out of the dentist office looking just fine, perhaps a bit swollen in her right cheek. She had no complaints, no tears.

And now we are home, and Sofi went straight to her room, put on her pajamas, asked me to read her a book, and eventually fell asleep.

And even Isaac is napping now too, again, which is unusal, because he doesn't usually take another nap once he's napped already. But he was screaming while Sofi was napping (a bad habit he has started to do more and more, and which I'm afraid he passed on to Russell's 8-month son while we were in the Black Hills visiting), so I told him to take the outdoor voice outside, and he screamed at me in response, so I took him outside on the porch and shut the door... his time out for screaming. Well he didn't like that at all, and when his minute time out was done he was very sorry, very sniffly, and once comforted he walked over to the spot on the floor where he left his bear blanket, picked it up, walked to his room, motioned to his crib, and proceeded to fall asleep.

So here I am, with two children amazingly napping at the same time, and it isn't even lunch time yet. A very unusual day, to be sure.

PS: Sofi started karate class at the YMCA last night. I work at the Coop on Tuesday evenings, so I couldn't be there. But Mary took her, and I'll try to get her to blog about it. Why karate you ask? Basically because of the wonder of books, really. Sofi checked out a book from the library in which a girl learns karate. And this sparked her interest. So we thought we'd let her try it. As Mary would tell it, based on the militaristic manner the first class was run, this isn't something that would appeal to neither her nor I. But Sofi really liked it, so for now we are trying to stay open to it.

Sofi's First Dentist Visit

Eating fish.
Getting shots from a really long needle.
Waiting in line at the DMV.

These are a few of my less favorite things.

And that is fine.

What isn't so fine, as I've come to realize as a father, is casually nurturing a similar dislike in my children. I want them to try what the world has to offer on their own, and make their up their own minds and form their own decisions.

So it was with this in mind that I took Sofi to the dentist today.

I'd done several things in preparation. We visited the office the day before, so her first trip could be a "non-event" and she could get a feel of what it looked like and what to expect. And, as is my usual prescription for a new experience, we checked out books about visiting the dentist.

And boy did I have to keep my mouth shut. While reading these books they all basically go through a typical visit, and go through the different tools the dentist will use. Pretty much ALL of them said that the tool they use to brush your teeth "tickles". Tickles? Are they kidding me? That thing that spins at high revolutions and grinds the awful tasting fluoride into my teeth? If that's tickles, why don't I giggle? And all the books mention cavities, and how they are fixed, but don't even try to explain how it feels. Thankfully Sofi had no cavities. But they didn't take x-rays (that comes during the next visit I guess), so that possibility may be drawing near. I suppose all kids get cavities eventually.

Sofi did extremely well. She even did it all without me---I waited in the waiting room filling out new patient paperwork (I didn't bring Isaac... if Sofi didn't enjoy her experience Isaac was the last person I would want to see that). She came back smiling, with a sticker on her shirt, holding a balloon, a small toy horse, a Polaroid, and a new tooth brush. I joked that I must not be a very good patient, because they only give me the toothbrush. Of course, it wouldn't matter if they did give me all that stuff---I'd still hate going.

At least Sofi has formed her on thoughts about the dentist, and they appear to be positive.

Isaac's 12 Month Check-up

Isaac had his 12 month check-up today. Mary said it was his worst one ever. Not because he is of poor health, but because he received four shots in each leg (delivered four at a time, thankfully) and had to have his finger pricked to draw two ounces of blood for a test of some sort (I think it was an iron test, but I stayed home with Sofi, so I cannot say for sure... it was routine, irregardless). Mary said Isaac was very mad about the whole thing, and screamed and cried for five minutes. I'm sure it was hard on Mom as well. She sang "Wheels on the Bus" to try to calm him, which she thinks will now probably be his least favorite song. When she ran out of versus, and started to tear up herself, the best she could do was hum.

The stats: Isaac is 29 3/4" high and weighs 20 pounds 4.4 ounces.

Snipped

It is amazing how quickly one's life can change. And today is the day in which I became unable to add to the world's population.

In theory anyway. Technically I'm not sterile for another 2-3 months, as sperm can still hang out for that long I guess. And then there is the uncommon but not unheard of possibility of the tubes growing back together. So try as hard as humans may, it still isn't 100% in our control.

So if for some reason we end up having a third child, it will certainly be a miracle. And I'll accept that, because if it happens, then it was truly meant to be.

As Mary has been saying since I got home, our children are now limited editions. Not that they were replaceable to begin with, and not that one is exactly like the next, but there is a certain finality to it all. One that did not come easily for Mary. She teased me for awhile when the plan was for me to get this done, but I never got around to making the appointment. But when I finally made the call and set the date, suddenly she was talking about not having it done. This surprised me, as I thought we were on the same page. For me it's about a couple of things. There's the whole population growth argument, and just being responsible for my share. And there also is the factor that I don't think I would mentally enjoy the commitment of staying at home for another 4-5 years. There are times I enjoy, but there are also times that drive me crazy, and I wouldn't mind having more adult time sooner rather than later. And Mary agrees we can't afford a third child, and she agrees she doesn't really want to go through the whole pregnancy thing again. And then there is the risk factor of having a baby as you approach 40.

But those babies, they are so darn cute, aren't they? It is hard to say "No, not even a chance."

Our clinic said Mary had to be there to sign off on the entire procedure, but I was talking with the doctor while he was doing his cutting and sewing and he was telling me that legally the clinic can't deny a vasectomy, regardless of marital status, and that I could have had the procedure done without Mary signing off. They just advise against it.

It was pretty quick. About a half hour. Most uncomfortable thing was the injection of the local anesthetic (with a needle that was at least an inch and a half long!). And it was odd to have the private part tied down with a rubber band so that it wouldn't flop over and get in the way. And to be awake for it all, and talking to the doctor through the whole thing, that was odd too.

But like I said, it was over fast. I took a peek at the operating tools while I was getting my clothes back on and saw part of those "tubes" sitting there, like short, limp sections of spaghetti. And then I just walked out. And now I'm home.

It does kind of feel like someone kicked me in the family jewels every now and then.

Isaac's 9 Month Check-up

Isaac went in for his 9 month check-up today. Weighed in at 17 pounds 2 ounces. 29.5 inches tall. I don't recall where this falls percentile wise, but it must not be extreme on either end, otherwise I'd remember it. Perhaps Mary remembers, I'll have to ask her, because I do recall her being worried that he wasn't high enough in the percentile for weight. As she put it, and I paraphrase, "He's just one sickness away from being under weight". Guess we all have to worry about something.

What blows me away is how well he handles the whole thing. He is so easy going, even when Kris the Nurse-Practitioner is looking in his eye, mouth and probing in his ears. Sofi hated that part of the exam and cried loudly when she was she was this age.

He only really cries when he gets vaccine shots, which he did today, and even then he doesn't really cry all that long. I happened to be with Sofi in the waiting room when he got his shots, and when he came out I couldn't even tell he had been given any shots.