Head Injuries 101

If you've got a toddler...you need to know about head injuries. Today I placed Benson down beside me in Mother Goose to stop his wiggling. He objected by executing a full body reverse head-butt to the windowsill behind him.

Not exactly a new move to us, he often backhead-butts me right in the chin. Fun with mummy's teeth! This time seemed to really sting though, he had the silent screams which he rarely ever has. I am grateful for some sign of pain reflex!

I didn't notice until 10 minutes later that the cut was bleeding (why does this always happen in PUBLIC)...so we had our snacks and I took him down to Clover Care. Dr. Wong-Ting (sp?) declared him okay and left me with the following, which I'm planning to tattoo down my arm:

" While no evidence of serious injury is found at this time, here are the SIGNS TO WATCH FOR within the next 48 hours:
1. Increased drowsiness
2. Difficulty in rousing the patient (patient should be awakened every 2 hours during the first night.)
3. Persistent vomiting.
4. Slowing of pulse rate.
5. Continued headache.
6. Stiffness of neck.
7. Bleeding or clear fluid dripping from ears or nose. {this gonna be a tough one.}
8. Weakness of facial muscles or either leg or either arm.
9. Development of convulsions (fits).
10. No Aspirin, ASA.
11. Plain Tylenol ONLY.
12. Change in pupil size, one compared to the other.

She did mention that # 12 was one of the most important and his eyes were the most beautiful she had ever seen. (well, she said they were "fine". the rest was written all over her face.)

No stitches required because his hair will cover the scar. "And I bet he won't be doing that again..." sigh. How many times have we heard THAT?!!

Two

Last night it was so very hot. Benson woke up crying, matted with sweat. Bill broke his "no babies in the bed" rule to calm our heated babe by laying him on his chest. It's a favourite position for them...for Bill, the classic excuse to nap (for the LOVE OF GOD, don't wake up the baby!). Benson is decreasingly cuddly these days, so we love to take full advantage. Every time they lay this way, it brings to mind how much he has grown. It really is unbelievable.

Benson used to span from Bill's collarbone to the bottom of his ribcage. Then, to the belly button. Slowly but oh-so-quickly, he's grown nearly to the top of Bill's knees. (And Bill is a giant.) I watch videos from the first few days and it's incredible that that wobbly, skinny little creature has become this incredibly communicative strudy, skinny little toddler who learns in leaps and bounds and surprises and delights me every single day.

I remember in the beginning...I wanted to know him so badly! What parts of us would we pass along...who would he look like...would he love to dance or would he be introverted (no chance of that, though). I would watch him for hours to spot clues into the future.

Now that I know him, I struggle between wanting to know him even more, looking forward to his first non-parrotted "I love you" (not to mention pooping on the potty!) ... and wanting to stop time to just indulge in his sweet babyness before it slips away, since he stretches into childhood so quickly with every passing second.

Happy Birthday, baby.

Mommy Block

I can't wait until brain-to-blog is invented. I was kept up all night by a certain someone who had to punctuate each allergy-induced sneeze with a loud curse word and sometimes a smack on the bed. We really are the family that suffers together!

But I was laying there thinking of all the things I wanted to get ready for Benson's birthday partay along with all of my random thoughts I need to get out of my head and onto paper (er, screen?), ie: blog.

Buuuuuuuut when I get 30 seconds to do so I seem to surf around aimlessly and okay, let's be honest, spend way too much time on Facebook!

And now we're going to go outside and enjoy.

So when Benson is stressing me out in 15 years, I am not going to be able to look back on his teeny tiny years and all the feelings and dreams I had, and it's all Facebook / random July sun's fault. Darn it.

Family

After doing more reading of blogs and blogging of blogs than actual blogging, I'm getting a little itchy to blog. I'm beginning to feel more positive about the future, and living content in the moment, as opposed to uber-planning the next 40 years. Every so often during the car hunt we would hit that bump of what car we'll need when the first lease runs out (Bill says mini-van, I say, who knows?). But other than that I am not really thinking beyond my next weekend.

Of course me being...ME, I have to explore all these alternate futures. So I have imagined several different futures, and the one I am forcing myself to consider the most is having an only child in Benson. We're so lucky to have this little chunk of perfection, so it's not exactly a consolation prize. And he's such a social butterfly, he'll never be lonely.

But trying to imagine parenting a single-child family is like trying to put on my most favourite pre-baby outfit: It just doesn't fit...and it's just not me...or us.

It really came to light at Liam's 1st birthday party. Last time I held a babe, Benson was not too keen with the situation. So I was giving Devon (7 mo) some cuddles. Benson immediately came over and said "Hi baby! shaliru bush flagyl baby!" while pointing and grinning at the baby. He told me a story about the baby and shared his opinion on the "niii (nice) baby". All the while keeping a possessive hand on my shoulder, but still.

He was so sweet with Devon, that I allowed myself to go back and revisit my old plans for our life: Benson playing big brother to a few siblings...screaming and wrestling...but ultimately bonding with a niii baby, and growing up with a strong sense of family (and chaos).

So here's to great test results, good genes, and healthy futures. I'm pretty sure it will be terrifying, but in the end, so worth it. And watch out for the Robbins boys.

Night nights...plus

Benson's schedule is all askew, so we had a hard time going down for night-nights. He kept crawling out of the crib and landing with a thunk. So I lowered the side of the crib, at least if he climbs out he is less prone to injuring himself.

Finally he's all cried out, so I went in to check on him and put him back in his crib. Well he totally climbed back in his crib with Elmo and Dog, sleeping in his usual position. Too funny. I guess the side of the crib is staying down, it's easy enough for him to crawl in and out, and he won't roll out of bed.

It was just so funny, I gingerly opened the door, trying to make sure not to hit him (he usually crawls up and curls up behind the door when he climbs out of the crib), and there he was, right where I left him...

Turn it off BC

VANCOUVER/CKNW - The results from BC's "Turn It Off" day are in. BC Hydro says during peak hours between 7 and 9 p.m. yesterday, it recorded a savings of approximately 70 megawatts or 1.2 million incandescent light bulbs being turned off for the entire evening.

BC Hydro says if British Columbians continued to turn off unnecessary lights and appliances during those hours, the savings would provide enough electricity to power 8000 homes for an entire year.

I turned off everything all day. I even got out my coffee press to use instead of the coffee machine, but I realized that I had no idea how to use it...and it probably would defeat the purpose if I turned on the computer to Google instructions for it.

In exchange for my awesome unpluggedness, I allowed myself to watch Lost...after all, it was the second-to-last episode of the season and after being unplugged all day, my eyes needed to return to their regular box shape.

Oh, I also had the radio on in the morning. Benson and I have a dance partay every morning, and he's starting to develop an opinion. His opinion on my singing was expressed through a very Jen-like look of disgust and confusion. Now I know why Bill hates that face when I make it.

If changing names is so wonderful, why don't our husbands do it too?

Christy Clark » If changing names is so wonderful, why don’t our husbands do it too?

Christy was dead on in her column today. I always thought I'd keep my name when I got married, just like most of the marrieds I knew who were 5-10 years older. After all, being a Jennifer, I was basically defined by my last name, which is way less common than the 70s favourite that is my first.

When our parents generation got married, most of them only carried their maiden name for about 20 years, so they didn't get all that attached to it, I guess. Somehow those extra 5 years really made me reluctant to give it up.

But in getting married I dreamed of becoming a cohesive unit....the Robbins family...Mrs. Robbins...Mrs. William Robbins...etc...etc. And in the end it just seemed more harmonious to be The Robbins(es? I have never quite figured it out...). Since we planned to fill up the house with kids, I didn't want to be left out with a different name.

All in all, it just felt right...and more romantic...to become Team Robbins. As for him taking my name, well he just has the better name...and I wanted it. (Anyone who knows my ultra-conservative husband would probably guess how that would go down, anyway...)

BTW, I was so happy to have a more "common" name. Raywood is not all that common and is always somehow butchered (usually becomes Raymond.) Of course everyone's names get screwed up anyway...who would have thought Robbins would be so difficult. I'm back to simply spelling my name whenever I have to give it out. ("It's Robbins R-O-B-B-I-N-S")