Notes from a Father in Training

Whatever your plans are, cut them in half.

If you plan on going to the mall and In 'n Out, just go to In 'n Out. If you plan on running to the video store and to get gas, just get gas (especially since we all Netflix anyway). And if you are planning on going to Santa Barbara, don't. Cut it in half. Ventura is even pushing it.

Last week was Buena Park's Spring Break and my parents, the devoted and mildly obsessed new grandparents, came for a visit. It was delightful. There were extra, and experienced, hands to help out. But mostly those hands fought over holding Garrett.

On Thursday, we loaded the stroller, diaper bag (I remembered it this time!), baby, grandparents, and mom and dad and headed out for a nice drive up to Santa Barbara to spend some time on the coast. We never made it there.

We were just over an hour into the drive and the tension in the car had grown to the size of a tangible beast. There was no crying or loud fussing, but there was tension, worry, concern and fear of traffic. We started second guessing our decision to go to Santa Barbara. We're only have way there, we fretted. Can Garrett hold out? Can WE hold out? And so an audible was called. (Aren't you proud, Ricky-Joey, about the use of a sports term?) We were close to Ventura and figured it was as good as it was going to get.

And good it was. We drove along the scenic coast (which brought back fond and frantic memories from my college days), moseyed through downtown, and found a nice brewery for lunch.

On the way home we took the 1 south which is a spectacular drive. We flew right along the ocean's edge, cutting along the curves of the cliffs on the left and marveling at the clear day, the blue-meets-blue horizon, the foamy surf, and Santa Monica in the distance.

And from there things only got worse. By this time we were ready to cross over the the 5 to head home, just in time for rush hour traffic! It was a long, slow journey back to Hanover Street. One that tried the patience and wearied the eyes.

In the end, there were plenty of wonderful memories, but the lesson was this: Time is a pressing issue with an infant. Laura and I were hyper aware of feeding times, time in the car seat, wondering if we were pushing our luck and would, at any moment, have a vengeful, tired, screaming son on our hands. And so, I say to you other Fathers-in-Training, whatever you want to do, cut it in half. Everyone will have a much better time.

And now, without further ado (since he is really the reason you bother stopping by this site anyway) here is a new video of Garrett, my adorable son.



Alright, here's another one: