Sleep?

I have been slacking lately on keeping this blog updated with new content due to my lack of extra time during the day. Between work and a new baby, I haven't had much time for any extracurricular activities. I get to play video games occasionally while the baby sleeps, but he somehow always wakes up as soon as I turn on the Xbox. That's okay, I like having guy time with my boy.

We took a road trip a few weeks ago to St. Mary's, Ohio to visit some family and it was nice to be able to relax after being go, go, go for the first three weeks of Charlie's life. I can't believe that he is going to be five weeks old on Sunday. I have to say, having a child is the best thing in the world, but they drain every ounce of energy that you have. Trying to keep up with their schedule is brutal.

I have been fortunate that Jamie is able to stay home with him and I can try to sleep through the night. I still hear him when he cries at night and it brings me out of my coma like sleep. I guess that it is just instinct.

No matter how much sleep I am not receiving, it is all worth it.

The curse of the drive-thru

Why is it that every time you go through a fast food drive-thru, something gets screwed up? How hard is it to leave off the tomatoes or understand the value of "one" order? I guess that the head sets that employees wear are frying their brains.

Having worked in fast food I understand that during busy hours you may get sidetracked, but I was the only customer at the restaurant. The headset never distracted me and If I did not understand what the customer was saying I would ask them to please repeat. Now you pull up and someone says in a squeaky voice, "would you like to try a combo meal today?" you give your order and there is a long silent pause. Then the voice comes back, "please pull forward." Uhhh...are you going to repeat the order back to me? Probably not because they forgot half of what you just ordered. They will just wait for you to get to the window and say, "did you say that you wanted ranch?" Uh, no. "BREADSTICKS!"

I don't know how many times I have pulled up to a drive through to peer through the window and see the hard working employee standing there with four other employees on their phones. When I worked in fast food, my typical crew was only five people so this leads me to believe that no one is working on anything or it takes all of their combined brain cells to make a salad.

I don't get it!?! The times are changing I suppose. No one cares about quality or customer service anymore. We are all just another number in the line and companies really do not care who they hire to work for them and represent them as long as they will work for minimum wage.

Maybe if the corporations would pay a little more attention to who is working for them and how much they are paying out in mistaken orders, they might realize it would be less expensive to hire quality employees and train them better. Until then, just pick the tomatoe off yourself.

Grocery Getter

Last night was Charlie's first trip to the grocery store. He did pretty well until we hit the freezer aisle. He did not like having frozen food piled on him in the cart. I'm just kidding people. We put a blanket over him first. Okay, back to seriousness.

Our normal 45 minute run turned into a 90 minute adventure. I'm thinking baby sitter next time. Any takers? It took 15 minutes to get Charlie dressed, 10 minutes to load up in the car, luckily it's only a two minute drive, 5 minutes to unload the car and situate the grocery cart, 45 minutes to shop, 4 minutes to change a terrible diaper and 6 minutes to check out. I don't know if that equals 90, but you get the idea.

It was fun going to the store with our little family. I was able to stock up on gluten free food and beverages so that I could officially start the diet again. This week will be fruit, salad and rice. I might eat a baked potato or two.

I am going to try to focus on my gfreeforme vlog on YouTube so that I can spread the word about being gluten free. I only have one vlog so far and it is a simple introduction. If you have any request for the vlog or the blog, please let me know.

So Big!

I can't believe it! My two week old child has already outgrown his newborn clothes! He is too long. I feel like the next time that I turn around he will be walking. "Slow down son. Let daddy enjoy you at this age for a while."

Being a father is the most awesome feeling in the world. I don't understand how some people in this horrible world could harm, neglect and abandon their children.

Every little flinch, twitch or noise that he makes is translated as communication. "He just waved!" "I think he said I love you?" "He just smiled at me!" These are most likely not his intentions, but it is funny to watch us act like it is.

The first few days were overwhelming, but our little family has settled into a routine and things are going well. Charlie is the running the entire show, but that is okay. He is spoiled rotten already. Lord help me when he comes home from Grandma and Grandpas house.

Charlie is taking his first trip to St. Mary's next weekend, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that he doesn't mind being in his car seat for a few hours. If he still fits!?!

The Blowout!!

I have officially been Through the fatherhood right of passage known as the "blowout". I was familiar with the blowout before I became a father, but I never had to "deal" with the situation. Thank you Charlie for breaking me in. (sarcasm)

I knew that babies sometimes get a belly ache and have a little trouble moving their waste when you transition between milk and formula. I was not expecting the movement to happen all at once.

My poor son was whimpering in discomfort throughout the night and we did what we could to console him. We called the doctor and she said to wait a little bit longer before getting concerned. The next thing I knew my 8 day old child looked up at me and said "hey dad, check my diaper now".

I was immediately shocked to find that nuclear reactor 1 had melted down in my child's diaper. Of course it was my turn for the change and I dreaded what was about to transpire. One million thoughts ran through my head, am I going to vomit, will it burn if it gets on my hand, can I hose him down, etc...?

I approached the contaminated area with caution and laid the package on the changing pad. I opened the iron clad flaps of the now loaded diaper and prepared for the worst scene ever. I began to decontaminate the area when all of a sudden the sprinkler system activated. The whole area was flooded. The sprinkler startled Charlie and his foot entered the contaminated area. I was not very excited about all of the events that had just taken place.

I had no idea where to start. Do I clean the foot, no need to cover the sprinkler now, do I clear the initial mess or do I wipe down the wall? Oh lord, why didn't anyone give me an owner's manual with this child?

I gained control of the situation and all turned out well, but I earned a badge of honor in the process. To all of the new fathers and fathers-to-be out there, prepare for the blowout. It is not a matter of if, but when!

The New Year!

So far 2012 has been a pretty good year for me. I know that we are only two days into January, but I feel like good things are coming my way this year. Work has been good over the past two days. People are buying cars which means money is flowing and the economy is not as bad as it may seem. Yes, the healthcare system in this country sucks and is nearly unaffordable for a lot of people, but people are spending.

My gluten free diet has been going well for the first two days of the year. I did have a relapse today when the guys at work ordered a cinnapie. If you don't know what a cinnapie is, it is a pizza sized cinnamon roll covered in frosting. It is heaven in your mouth and hard to resist because it smells so good. Call your local PapaJohns and order one. Tell them Michael sent you. Maybe they will give me a sponsorship.

I am enjoying this year's first snow. I have been watching it from the comfort of my nice warm office and have not had to drive in it yet. Traffic is pretty backed up. Oh shoot, I do leave work soon. Oh well. Snow is still neat.

My family has been absolutely great supporting us and the new baby. They want to be with us all of the time which is cool. I like my family. They bring food so that is an automatic open invitation. Charlie is laid back just like daddy and only cries when he is hungry or needs a diaper change. He likes to be awake between 4 and 6am, but he just lays in bed and looks around. I can't wait to take him fishing this spring.

All is well in 2012 and I am loving life! Happy New Year!

Back to Gluten Free

Happy New Year! The beginning of a new year is a great time to make changes in your life. Put all of the events from the past year behind you and look forward to positive changes in your life. This year I am going to restart a gluten free diet.

Jamie and I discovered the gluten free diet last year when we were looking for anything that might help us conceive a child. We started the diet on January 1st, 2011 and we found out that we were pregnant in May of 2011. Pretty amazing if you ask me. I don't know that the diet alone was the one main factor, but I am sure that it was a major player. The gluten free diet promoted many changes in our health. I have battled sleep disorders that seemed to disappear within a matter of weeks of starting the diet. I felt more energetic, I had more stamina throughout the day. I exerceised for about 30 minutes a day, three times a week and saw great results in my body shape and size.

To give you a basic background on gluten, it is a protein that is found in wheat, rye and barley. Essentially, bread and pasta style foods. Gluten is used in artificial flavors and can be found in pre-packaged foods. Most people think, "Oh my goodness! What can you eat? It must be so hard." The gluten free diet is not hard at all. You can eat whole fruits, vegetables, meats and dairy products. As gluten free foods become more popular, we are starting to see gluten free pasta (made from rice and is delicious), gluten free cake mix (delicious), gluten free bread mixes and many other foods that companies are creating in a gluten free style.

Jamie and I stopped the gluten free diet after we found out that she was pregnant because it seemed like a good excuse to eat junk food all of the time. After a few short weeks of being off of the diet, I started gaining weight rapidly (some might have been sympathy weight) and I did not feel as energetic as I had. I kept telling myself to get back on the diet, but it was very hard with all of the not-so-gluten free food in my house that was readily available. I was able to quit smoking during this time, which is good, however I ate more to fill the cravings. Here I am 20 pounds heavier than I was back in May.

Today is January 1st, 2012 and I am going back to the gluten free diet. I have already started the day with a coney bowl. For those of you that are not familiar with a cheese coney, please google it. The coney bowl is simply a cheese coney in a bowl with no bun. See how easy it is to be gluten free. Delicious food, slightly modified to fit your dietary demands. I must say that the gluten free diet is not a weight loss diet. It is a healthy lifestyle diet. You will not lose 100 pounds in 10 weeks, but you will feel more energetic and that will help you exerceise to lose weight. You will sleep better and you will feel better everyday when you wake up.

I have created another youtube channel dedicated to my gluten free diet and exercise plans. Please subscribe to gfreeforme and follow me as I show you how gluten free can positively affect your lifestyle. I have not posted any videos yet, but I should have the first intro video up tonight.

Happy New Year! Be G Free!