An extremely scary weekend

B, JSL, Medical

We just had a scary weekend.  We were at B’s parents house Saturday night celebrating Chanukah a night early.  Gifts were opened, kids were excited, a meal was eaten – so far, so good.  Then – before dessert was served – we took some more time to play with the kids.  JSL went chasing after B’s father and slipped on the kitchen floor (he was in his socks which apparently didn’t have enough traction).  He landed right on the back of his head.

B’s father brought him right to me as he screamed.  He’s hit his head quite a few times, so we first thought nothing of it and proceeded with dessert to try to distract him from the fall.  During dessert, he refused a chocolate covered pretzel.  (JSL refuse chocolate?  Something *must* be wrong!)  Then we noticed that he was extremely pale, started shaking, and was glassy eyed.  We called 911 with visions of his febrile seizure running through our heads.

The paramedics came and checked him out.  During the checkout, he didn’t complain at all.  (Another non-JSL-like reaction.)  They decided to take him to the hospital.  B ran to get his stuff.  Of course, they were coming in from the snowy outdoors and B didn’t notice the water they brought in.  She slid and jammed her finger and arm.

We headed to the hospital, B in the ambulance and me in the car.  NHL stayed with B’s parents.  I heard him complaining to them that he couldn’t sleep there tonight because he didn’t have his "buddies." I followed the ambulance across some pretty treacherous roads (unplowed narrow city roads with cars on both sides).

Finally, we got to the hospital.  I had to wait 10 minutes for them to get checked in so I could see B and JSL.  (Technically, I was a visitor since B was the one who came in with him.)  When I walked in, JSL seemed a bit better.  He actually requested his binky – something he hadn’t done the past hour.  (Another *HUGE* non-JSL behavior.  He’s a binky addict.)  He also walked around the ER, taking off away from me to see something that interested him.

They determined that he had a concussion and possibly a mini-seizure from the fall.  They told us to wake him up a few times during that night and the next one and take him in to see the doctor on Monday.  (B’s actually taking him tomorrow due to the weather.)  I’m hoping for a boring week this week.

JSL/Daddy Bonding Time

Fatherhood, JSL, Parenting, Photos

Last night, B’s parents took her and NHL to see Disney on Ice (check TheAngelForever.com as I’m sure my wife will post pics/videos soon).  JSL and I stayed home.  JSL wanted to watch TV.  Usually, this means recorded episodes of Blue’s Clues.  As I didn’t want to deal with tons of different Blue’s Clues episodes, I I looked through our DVDs to find a nice, long Blue’s Clues movie.  Instead, I happened upon "What’s the name of that Song?" from Sesame Street.  The DVD featured Super Grover and Elmo on the cover.  As soon as he saw it, JSL started chanting "Grover! Grover!"  So in went the DVD and we sat down on the couch to watch.

As the movie commenced, Super Grover is flying above the city wearing his helmet, cape and G on his chest-plate.  JSL chanted "Grover!  Hat!"  Yes, JSL, Grover is wearing a hat.  He watched the movie enthralled by it all.  He did get a bit annoyed when Grover wasn’t on screen though.  That’s my boy!  (I loved Grover growing up.  I had a stuffed Grover that I carried everywhere.  He’s still my favorite character.)  At the end, he kept pointing and laughing as Super Grover flew past the screen.  Then he signed and said "More!  More!  Grover!"  So we watched it again.  And again.  And again.  And again.  Yes, that’s 5 times.  I assure you, I *DO* know the name of that song as well as all of the lyrics and everything every character says.

During our bonding time, I decided to do a photographic experiment.  I found a sturdy perch for my camera, set the timer to 10 seconds, and took photos of JSL and myself.  JSL laughed whenever he saw his photo on the LCD screen.

Five Simple Rules For My Sons

JSL, Judaism, Life, NHL

I was just reading BuckDaddy‘s 2024 Rules for My Daughter and thought it would be a good idea to compose a set of rules for my sons when they turn 18.  So here goes (in no particular order):

Learn to be self-sufficiant.

Before college, I was reliant on my parents for everything.  My mother did my laundry, cooked my meals, and cleaned the house.  I contributed little to nothing as my mother took the entire burden on herself.  Once I moved off to college, I started cooking and cleaning for myself.  I even did my own laundry.  After college, I moved back in with my parents for a bit.  Looking back, one of my big regrets is that I didn’t do enough to help out around the house.  My mother offered to do my laundry and I accepted the offer.  Pretty soon, I was back to being reliant on them for everything.  (With the exception that this time I had a job and my own car.)

B and I aren’t going to model our household after my parents’ house.  I’m not going to come home from work, sit down on the couch, and ask when dinner’s going to be ready.  In fact, I’m the one who does most of the cooking.  I honestly enjoy trying new recipes out.  As our boys get older, they will share in the household chores.  It will better prepare them for when they live on their own or with their future girlfriends and/or wives.

Treat others the way you want to be treated.

This is something I’m constantly telling NHL now.  He’ll push someone or grab JSL’s neck.  When I stop him, I ask him whether he would like it if someone did that to him.  Of course, he answers that he wouldn’t.  I’ve found in life that you should always treat people the way that you would want to be treated.  Sometimes, it isn’t easy.  People can be rude and cruel at times.  During those times, it is even more important to stay civil and treat those people nicely.  This doesn’t mean that you need to let people walk all over you, but you can be cordial while you hold your ground.

Follow your traditions.

Your heritage is a very important thing.  Because we are Jewish, there are certain traditions that we follow.  We go to temple during Jewish holidays.  We celebrate Chanukah and not Christmas.  And, because I’m more traditional, we keep Kosher in the home.  (We’ll bring in non-Kosher foods, but we eat them using paper dishes and plastic utensils.)  To me, following your religious traditions is very important.  I will leave it to my boys just how much they will follow them.  They might go to Temple every day for morning minyan, might only attend on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, or anywhere in between.  It’s their choice.  About the only thing that would disappoint me would be if they decided to follow another religion’s traditions.  This leads to…

Respect the traditions of others.

Just because you follow your traditions, doesn’t mean you need to put down or make fun of the traditions of others.  In some ways, this falls under "Treat others the way you want to be treated," but I feel it’s important enough to be separate.  Just because your religion is the right path for you, it doesn’t mean that it is the right path for everyone.  You should never force your religious beliefs onto others.  Finally, even if a person’s traditions seem strange to you, don’t make fun of you.  After all, some of your traditions likely seem strange to others.

Strive to leave this world a little better than it was before you.

Like the last rule, this could be grouped under "Treat others the way you want to be treated." It means doing something to help those less fortunate than you.  It means so much more than that, though.  Striving to leave the world a little better means generally acting like a good citizen.  If you have trash, don’t just toss it in the street.  Instead, wait until a garbage can can be used.  If you are done with a shopping cart, don’t just leave it in the middle of the parking lot where it could roll into other cars.  Instead, put it in the cart corral.  Don’t make a mess and just assume that someone else will clean it up for you.

I think if everyone followed those five simple rules, the world would be a better place.

JSL’s First Peanut Sunflower Butter Sandwich

Food, JSL, Photos

JSL has been a finicky eater recently.  He’ll eat crackers, cheese sticks, pizza, and cream cheese sandwiches.  Sometimes, he can be coaxed into eating chicken nuggets or macaroni and cheese.  However, he’s not eating much else.  This is surely the beginning of the Terrible Twos and him asserting his culinary independence.  We’re worried about his protein intake, however.

We keep a kosher kitchen and kosher meat is very expensive, so we mainly eat vegetarian style meals.  Peanut Butter would be a good protein source, but that’s a no-no for at least 5 more months.  Enter Sunbutter.  While doing some research on Peanut Butter alternatives, I stumbled upon a review of Sunbutter mentioning how good it was for little kids.  I checked a local natural foods store, but it was insanely expensive.  Another store was pricey too, but I decided to take a chance on it.

Tonight was our trial run.  The veggie dogs that we were eating for dinner didn’t interest JSL.  He liked the bun, but refused to take even the tiniest taste of veggie dog.  I decided to make him half of a Sunbutter sandwich.  He was in heaven.  He gobbled it down and asked for more.  B, NHL, and I even took a taste.  It has a very PB-like flavor with a hint of sunflower seeds.  This is definitely going into the JSL meal rotation.

 

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