BABY BLUES

It has been some time since my last update to this site, and for that, I do apologize. And I know that, lately, most people have been coming here looking for cute photos of Nate and Will. So allow me to fill the need. Here’s Will acting cute.
And here’s Nate acting… well… he’s been a bit squirmy.
But in all frankness, I’m actually a bit short on cute photos right now. I haven’t taken a lot of pictures lately, although I keep promising myself I will. To cut to the chase, we’ve got a case of the baby blahs around our house. The novelty has worn off, and the affects of prolonged sleep deprivation are really starting to set in. To put it another way, we’re checking to see if we kept the receipts for these kids when we left the hospital.

There are several reasons for this. First, I blame the kids. They are undergoing a massive growth spurt. In the last two weeks they’ve each grown about 2 inches and put on a pound. That’s a pretty big deal for these guys. So they’re always hungry and very demanding and poop up a storm. In short, they’re no fun. Don’t get me wrong, they’re cute looking, but they just don’t do anything fun. You can’t play with them, or tell them jokes, or bore them with stories about growing up in Rochester. All you can do is fill their gullets with milk. And in appreciation for your hard work, they crap out some of the nastiest stuff I’ve ever seen. I think I can be excused for thinking I’m getting the raw end of the deal.

Then there’s us. We’re tired and cranky and have this sneaking suspicion we’re never leaving this house again. I read this week that 14 percent of all new mothers get a touch of post partum depression, and 10 percent of new fathers do. I’ve had a little experience with depression in my day, and I can say I feel a little touch of it coming on. Some of the little joys in life (listening to music, watching the Daily Show, beating Julie at Mario Cart) seemed to be sucked dry. What’s left is a joyless death march of feedings and diaper changes. I was shat upon today, and pissed on twice. At no point during the process did I think, “The Miracle of Parenthood ™ is the best thing that has ever happened to me!” Remind me again why people sign up for this type of duty?

I’m compulsively watching every show on the Travel Channel. I don’t know what that means.

Now it’s 2:00 AM and I just got one of the twins back to bed (Blogger should have a feature that forbids me from posting any time after midnight.). I’ve got the iPod cranked up (Ben Folds Five, I haven’t listened to them in ages) and, for the first time in a while I’m feeling a small piece of freedom in the little audio world I’ve created in my head. I used to listen to Ben Folds a lot when I lived in Salt Lake City. I was in my 20s, poor, bored, and desperately unhappy. As Mr. Folds delightful melodies swirl around me, it occurs to me that, as batty as parenthood has made me this week, I wouldn’t go back to those Bad Old Days when I had all the freedom I could possibly ask for. Perhaps freedom’s not all it’s cracked up to be.

Nice reminder. Thanks Ben.