Late

So it looks like all those feeds in the past few days have really paid off: we brought Fionn to the Blackrock health centre in the teeming rain this morning for his weigh-in, and he topped the scales at 4.04Kg (just shy of 9lbs). He's gained on his birth weight of 3.77Kg, so we're delighted that he's doing so well, and it's a great reward for S to know that all her hard work is paying off.

It's strange to watch him feed: I've never actually seen someone eat as if their life depended on it :)

I think I may have overdone it with the down-in-the-dumps post last night, so I thought I'd relate some of the more pleasant side-effects of having my progeny hanging about. One of the sad realities of life these days is that parents / guardians of children are extremely wary of having strangers (especially men by themselves) interact with their children. I can't count the number of times I've smiled at a small child at play, only to receive a look of instant suspicion, and even revulsion, from an anxious parent, who quickly ushers their child out of my vicinity. You certainly can't blame the parents (and now more than ever I understand how they feel), but it always left me feeling a little depressed, that there was a section of the human race that I, as a young male, was banned from interacting with.

Fionn has changed that: he's like my Golden Ticket to the world of the Little People. I get to smile at children at play, even talk to them, kids come up to look at him (especially if I'm wearing him in the sling). We also appear to have joined the Club of Parenthood: we just had coffee in *bucks in the village (smashing view, terrible coffee), and spent 10 minutes yakking to complete strangers who were there with their 6 month old daughter. The conversation was along familiar patterns: feeding, sleep deprivation, how quickly they change at this age - topics that might have left other people a little glassy-eyed - but I felt a wonderful sense of camaraderie. Golly, but things have changed :)


Thanks to Paudie and SteveC for the heads up on the XKCD...