Tuesday 24 January 2012

Parenthood


 In the eight weeks since being a daddy, I’ve yet to hear any pitter pattering, although there has been plenty of "the yelling of tiny voices". But the introduction of a new human into our lives has meant many other changes, some obvious, some subtle.

 Things I realise that I can’t do anymore:

1.      Not sway. I can’t stand still without rocking side to side, or in a figure of eight motion. I call it Core Instability training. Anytime I’m stood up I look like I’m on the foredeck of a crab-boat.
2.      Walk away from a shopping trolley. Regardless of whether my child is actually in it or not. I'm no longer surprised to also find myself pushing it back and forth as I subconsciously rock potatoes to sleep.
3.      Wake up refreshed. Sleep is like the cartoons I watched as kid. They’re suddenly not there anymore, and now they’re gone I suddenly see how good they were, and I want them back.
4.       Leave a washing machine dormant. The thought of domestic appliances not working while I sleep/shop/work is enough to chill me to the core. If we had a dishwasher, I suspect I’d need a shrink. Factor Janathon into the laundry mountain, and it’s the stuff of nightmares.
5.       Regularly run more than eight miles a day. I’ve been thinking about this during my Janathon runs, whether I could run further, and blog less, but it's the day-in-day-out time away from home that adds up. If it’s personal and recreational, suddenly there’s a much finer balancing act to be done.

 However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Parenthood brings with it some unusual discoveries, including a whole host of things I realise I can now do one handed (since there’s invariably a baby occupying the other one):

1.       Type. Currently beinng dedmonbstratedd refasonabbly profhicienttly....
2.       Make a cup of tea. Though I suspect it will be many, many years before I get to finish one.
3.       Open a new pack of baby-wipes, or unpop poppers, or unfold blankets, or wipe peanut-piccalili (or something of similar appearance, consistency and aroma) off the lower half of a wriggling mammal. Nappy times are either the proving ground of the ambidextrous, or a bio-chemical catastrophe.
4.       Open and close screwtop bottles, jars etc. I still don’t know how this is done, because I’m always doing it at four in the morning in the pitch dark, but I can assure you it is somehow possible.
5.       Wash up, hoover, fold clothes, i.e. any housework-related effort that doesn’t involve chemicals or dust.


 Tonight I ran late again, but got the miles in. Another new route included a couple of decoy trails that turned into bramble or swamp, and the odd section of shoe-slurping mud slowed things down, but the mist was very pleasant, there were lots of friendly deer out, and I managed to wind the pace up for the final two miles, which always feels good. 

 The next mini-milestone of parenthood to look forward to will sadly mean less trail running. Once I'm happy that Littl'un can stabilise his head properly, he'll be joining me for the odd outing in his joggy-buggy thing. I'm sure I don't mind a bit of tarmac if it means I've got some company, and I'm excited to add one-handed running to my new parental repertoire.

Tonight's run: 9.03miles, 1:14hrs, 456ft ascent, 1265cals, two dead end trails
Janathon: 24 days, 24 blog posts, 230 miles

8 comments:

  1. best thing I did was get a backpack for AJ - harrie has just inheritted it and come Feb 1 she'll be coming with me on the walks. That WALKS. No running in Feb. You can take them pretty much everywhere. AJ would come with me on dog walks at silly o clock so Sal could get more sleep and we'd go on bushwalks together. It is fantastic.

    I love the way they know if you're standing up or not. I can be sitting down and rocking Harrie in EXACTLY THE SAME ROCKING MOTION as if I were standing and she'll know. "wwwwaaaaahhhhhhh" is baby for 'On your feet dad.'

    Sod the running mate, take 'em out as often as you can and share as much as possible. They'll be plenty of running (away!) to do when they hit the teens :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've long thought that the baby-backpack is the way forward, and specifically for the UK, one with a decent rain cover, which is where the slings fall short.

      I'm hoping the joggy/buggy thing is effective on fireroads, as this might be a good balance between baby/exercise/wildlife for mum and dad.

      Delete
  2. Lovely blog Gary - and well done on completing Janathon with a new born. Make the most of every moment - before you know it you'll be where I am with a 15/16 yo who doesn't want to be at home, and certainly doesn't want to speak to you for fear of you saying the wrong thing (in their eyes).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We're getting there. I say "we" as this is as much down to my wife as it is me. Janathon has been a good test in many ways, and I think it's come at exactly the right time, since over the next few months I'll be hoping to spend more time outdoors in daylight with Littl'un.

      Delete
  3. Great blog Goose. Running is definitely a selfish indulgence with a little-un and no more amplified than during Janathon. Good job our respective Fighter Commands are understanding. I'm looking forward to seeing Little-Adventures at the weekend. I've gone the route of Auswomble and brought myself a hiking pack for our little widger. It's superb. I'll bring it over so you can have a look as I reckon you're going to be impressed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We nearly bought one in the sales in Guildford, but we figured we'd see how we all got on with the sling first. The trick for us will be getting out together and making use of it... and overcoming bum-changes on blustery days! Roll on spring!

      Delete
  4. Nice one Gary, I remember those days!! Now my kids are 11 and 13. To think you've managed to amass those miles with a little one is amazing - good on you sir!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've had help (baby-wise, not running-wise), and I don't have to commute to work, but I think a month will be the absolute limit!

      Delete