Day Zero

Please mark this day on your calendars. Because Friday June 11, 2010 is that day that you will be able to refer back to when Nolin gets in trouble or does something wrong, because Friday June 11 is day zero…the day I worked from home and Nolin and I spent it just the two of us.  Any time Nolin gets in trouble for the rest of his life can now be traced back to this day.

Last night Jenn gave me the checklist to ensure that I did not cause any major problems in his future development.  Nolin, the man you become will be largely shaped on the 8 hours we spent together today.  The checklist went as follows:

•  At least 15 minutes of “Tummy Time” using the proper blankets and cushions. 
• Read a few books through out the day (Nolin loves the classics “Me Hungry” & Brown Bear Brown Bear”).
• Strategically use shakers to make noise that startles him (apparently scaring the hell out your kid helps him develop).
• Enjoy the hours of 9-12 because this is when he is happiest.

I nodded my head in agreement, but figured after three weeks of hanging out with Nolin I had this parenting thing down.  And then Jenn left for her class, and all of the sudden I realized…there is probably a lot of damage I can do in a short time.  I don’t know if I am ready for this.  To top it all off, Fridays are our deadline day and I really did have to do work today.

In between baby sitting and working, there were a few lessons that I learned today.  First, working from home with a 3 week old is not much different from working in the office.  I feel that my job as a manager has trained me well to be a father.  The only difference between being at home with Nolin and being at the office, is that my staff typically doesn’t ask me to burp them, and Nolin doesn’t talk back (at least not yet). 

The other lesson I learned was how to effectively multi-task.  There is nothing like holding a a 3 week old in your arms trying to keep a pacifier in their mouth in order to keep your child from crying while a customer is yelling at you because they don’t feel that they should have to pay their bills…awesome.

The final lesson I learned, is that I am incredibly jealous of Jenn because she gets to spend those moments with Nolin everyday.  Today was day zero, and I can’t wait for the days to follow.