Brandon Gilbert

No, this post isn’t about Pilgrims and native Americans. It’s about Ryne’s first Thanksgiving. At least the first one on the actual day. We had a thanksgiving get-together last weekend with my family, so we went to Jamie’s side of the family this week.

First up was lunch at Memaw’s (Jamie’s Grandmother) house. Lunch at Memaw’s is special and a Holiday tradition I’ve come to enjoy very much. Memaw reminds me a lot of my Granny Gail, who passed away several years ago. While I miss her a lot, get-togethers at Memaw’s help fill the void. Ryne has been there before, but this time he got to meet his Great Uncle Todd and Great Aunt Tiana.

Next up was dinner at Jamie’s Aunt Betsy’s. This is Jamie’s Dad’s sister. This brought on a whole slew of new people to meet. Ryne took it like a champ, though and didn’t get upset or freaked out by all the people. I suppose he was well prepared by my family though. When you see 20+ people at a time, 10 or so isn’t so hard to take.

As we wrapped up Thanksgiving week, I tried to explain to Ryne what Thanksgiving is and to Whom it is we give thanks.  I asked him to tell me his list of things he was thankful for, and this is his list:

Son: 1. Milk
2. Diapers
3. Wipes
4. Warm clothes, and cool clothes.
(As he was telling me, I was pretty proud of  his list, because it was all the necessities for him to this point)
5. Nana and Papa (my parents) and  Nana T and Papaw JimBob (Jamie’s parents–James, Jamie’s Dad, earned the name Papaw JimBob this week, after not really knowing what he wanted to be called for the first 4 months of Ryne’s life.  I can’t tell you how due to security reasons, but I am determined to make it stick) MeMaw and Papaw Gaston, PawPaw Prestridge, Granny and Pop Gilbert, and all my aunts, uncles, cousins, and all the hugs they give.
6. Jimmy Giraffe
7. My Seahorse (it plays music and it soothes him at bedtime. Jamie and I are thankful this one too.)
8. Alabama Football
9. Titans Football
10. My swing
11. My new bouncy seat.
12. Long car rides
(At this point, I was noticing a COUPLE OF THINGS he had left off his list, but I let him go on)
13. The radio in my room
14. My hands. My hands not only grab things for me, but they’re also quite tasty when I get hungry.
I think that’s all for now, maybe I’ll think of some later.
Dad: You don’t think you missed a couple of people to be thankful for in there?
Son: Who’s that?
Dad: Maybe your Mommy and me?
Son: I’m very thankful for Mommy, she gives me the milk…It was number one on the list, remember?
Dad: I give you milk when Mommy’s not home.
Son: Dad, you heat up leftovers, and you are not the sharpest tool in the shed, either.
Dad: Well, that’s not very nice, and why would you say that?
Son: Well, let’s start off with the fact that for the last few minutes while giving you my list, I’ve managed to count to 14, and you didn’t even notice. I mean, I’m four months old and I counted. You were so engrossed in your own ego waiting for a pat on the back that you missed an amazing accomplishment for me. And yes, I just said accomplishment, a word with 14 letters in it.
Dad: You’re right you are amazing in every way. I love you more than you can even imagine is possible, and you are Number 1 on my thankful list.
Son: Dad…
Dad: Yeah, buddy?
Son: You know I was just messing with you, right?
Dad: Really?
Son: Yes…You and mommy are both number 1 on my list of thanks.
Dad: Well, that makes me feel better.
Son: Yep, I love you both more than everything else, but you know what?
Dad: What’s that Junior?
Son: I really do need that milk. Is it warm yet?

It’s ok, I know where I stand…his smiles tell me all I need to know.

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Ryne had a rough night last night and didn’t want to sleep. This is tough on Jamie when he’s up crying, especially when she has to be at work at 7:00 AM. To help her get some sleep, I stayed up with him trying to get him to stay asleep and not cry.

Because she didn’t get good sleep, Jamie tried to sleep until the last possible moment before getting ready for work. This meant that I needed to get up and feed him this morning at the time she normall does it, right before she goes to work. She decided she would pump after she got to work.

So I fed him, and his Mommy gave him goodbye kisses. After he was done, I laid him back down for a nap. Since I had very little sleep to that point, I laid myself back down for a nap as well. He woke me up a little while later crying. It was definitely his “I’m hungry” cry.

I walked into his room so I could get him out of his crib. He looked up at me and screamed like he was a pig that knew it was on it’s way to the breakfast table as the guest of honor.

Dad: What’s the matter buddy? I’m just coming to get you to feed you.
Son: Oh, Dad! Thank Heavens, it’s you! I thought you were a Vampire!
Dad: A Vampire? has your mommy been letting you watch Buffy again?

Son: No, It’s just with your hair all crazy like that, I thought you were Robert Pattinson.

Dad: Robert Pattinson?
Son: Yeah, he’s a vampire.
Dad: No, He’s not a vampire, but he plays one on TV. And how do you even know about him? You weren’t even born yet when your mommy and I watched that DVD.
Son: You’d be so surprised what gets in that I could hear.
Dad: Well, You don’t have to worry about him…he’s not a vampire at all. just an actor. And you know what else?
Son: What?
Dad: He actually looks more like a Muppet than a Vampire!
Son: What’s a Muppet?
Dad: You mean you know what vampires are and who Robert Pattinson is, but you don’t know muppets?
Son: Sorry, but I only get what you guys give, so who’s to blame there?
Dad: OK, enough with the life lessons. Muppets are on Sesame Street, among other things, and we will find an episode for you to watch ASAP! But as for Robert Pattinson, he looks like Bert, the roommate of Ernie.
Son: Yeah, OK Dad. I can see that. You know what though?
Dad: What?
Son: That means YOU look like Bert! HaHaHa!
Dad: Hmmm….you know, you are so lucky that I love you.
Son: I know Dad, I love you too.

I know he loves me, I can tell. He hugs my neck when I get him out of the crib. Now, if only I knew if it was just because he knows we’re going to get some food.

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We were on our way to the Warehouse on an undercover assignment. This would be our second meeting with the suspects. Our team consisted of me, the guy who calls himself “Dad,” and the cute one who calls herself “Mommy.” Our mission was to infiltrate disguised as family of the suspects.

We arrived early at the safe-house adjacent to the warehouse. This is where we met our contacts, “Papa” and “Nana.” These are some of my favorite contacts, because they truly care about us. They give us a good place to sleep and rest, and they feed Dad and Mommy. They also give me a lot of hugs, and despite my rough exterior and Super Hero status, I love hugs.

We did a little gameplanning at the safe-house and watched a little Alabama Football, which I also love to do (even in the midst of battle prep, the Crimson Tide remains important).

After the game was over, we headed to the warehouse across from the safe-house. As we walked in, I was ambushed. everyone flocked towards me, shouting “Ryne!” I yelled for my backup, “My identity’s compromised!” But all they did was hand me off to the various people in the house.

I didn’t know what to do. I set off a diaper bomb, but even that didn’t deter them. They just kept coming and coming, but then it hit me…they were all giving me hugs and kisses. I melted. I decided that if it was my time to go, what a way to go. I still was a little scared, after all, because there’s like a bazillion people there, and I live in my secret lair with only two other people.

At the end of the day, I was able to make my escape back to the safe-house with Papa and Nana. It was a rough day, and so I needed a good cry. After that I was able to go to sleep. That warehouse is rough, but this time was easier, maybe next time will be easier and we can finally get to the bottom of why all these people keep getting together at one place. It’s very suspicious.

Epilogue from BrandNewDad:

What had happened was… we went to my parents’ house for an early Thanksgiving get together. All my aunts and uncles and cousins on my Dad’s side all get together at my grandparents’ house, which is beside my parents’ house. While I am an only child, my extended family is gi-normous. I imagine this is a little overwhelming for Ryne, since he is usually around two people at the most, except for church.

This was his second visit to his great-granny’s house, and he did much better this time around. I’m sure that in time, he’ll not be bothered by all of the loud folks all around him. It only took Jamie a few years…

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Some of you might have seen the video I posted a few days ago with Ryne laughing. If not, here is the video:

This was the first time that he had had deep belly laughs like this.  When he was a few weeks old, he would giggle in his sleep at dreams, but it was nothing like this. Jamie was trying to clean off his neck a little bit. He tends to get a little baby puke caught in between his four necks. As she was cleaning, he laughed a little bit. She called me in there, and sure enough, he kept doing it.

I wanted to capture it on video, so I ran to grab the camera. One of RynoBoy’s superpowers is that he always knows when a camera is in the room with him. It’s his RynoSense. He will then usually stop doing whatever cute or unbelievable thing he is doing at that moment.

I have been investigating, and I think he gets mesmerized by the red light on the camera, and then doesn’t care what else is going on. To try to keep this from being an issue, I decided to put my finger over the light. Well, guess what? That just so happens to be where the microphone is as well. That is why the audio cuts out a little bit. It’s just Stupid Daddy Tricks I suppose.

My plan did work, however, despite my best efforts at hijacking it. He did know when I came into the room with the camera, but he wasn’t mesmerized by the red light. He kept laughing, and I got it on video, and you can actually still hear the sound a little bit.

We are both real happy to have him finally do this. Jamie’s been wanting to hear it for a long time. I am also glad that while it’s his first belly laughs, it won’t be his last. He does spend a lot of time with me, and I do pretty silly things, and I look kinda funny.

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On Monday Ryne turned 4 months old. It’s hard to believe that he’s been here that long. With each new month that goes by, I like to get some kind of comparison of how much he’s grown. The picture below is his new 4 month comparison picture. On the left is a picture taken of him at 2 weeks in his Cubs hat that his Papa and Nana Gilbert got for him. On the right is a picture of him in the same hat taken on Monday.

Obviously there’s been a little growth in the head area. I wonder if it’s because we keep telling him how awesome he is, or if it’s because he knows he’s a superhero.

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I don’t know why, but since I’ve become a Dad, I’ve become much more musical. That’s kinda funny for someone with a degree in music business. My mom sang to me a lot when I was young, though, so I guess it’s just natural that I would do the same with Ryne. It seems like every situation has  a parody song of another song I’ve heard before. I thought I would start sharing some of the ones I’ve come up with. Since diaper changes are a several-times-a-day occurrence, the following song goes through my head quite a bit. It’s based on the song in the video above, Let’s All Go to the Lobby.

Let’s get rid of the Poopies
Let’s get rid of the Poopies
Let’s get rid of the Poopies
And make this diaper clean.

This thing’s starting to Reek
Too much longer, it’ll Leak.
We make sure the wipes are Handy
Oh my Lord, It’s a Dandy
So let’s get rid of the poopies
And make this diaper clean.

Let me know if anybody else has any of their own…or if this totally creeped you out:)

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There I was in the middle of a secluded island in the Pacific. I was on the trail of the evil Dr. Daddicus. He had been plotting world domination for some time. He wanted to steal all the baby wipes in the world so that parents would be thrown into a panic when they needed some and none were there to be had. I had to stop him. No one knows more than me the importance of a good baby wipe.

Dr. Daddicus has a lair in a cave on the island. I managed to slip through his EM (ElectroMagnetic) Shields and by his henchman undetected…or so I thought. I was about to close in on him when all of a sudden I was caught by huge hands and laid out on my back  in a cage behind bars. I was stretched out and they tried to immobilize me. The hands were trying to wrap me in a huge net. I fought back using all my powers. They spread some kind of substance onto my head. I can only assume it was meant to fight the genes in my body that give me my super abilities.

I kept fighting back and escaping the net. This was obviously frustrating them, as they cursing under their breath and telling me to just lay still. I couldn’t let them get me, though. I fought with all my might. Dr. Daddicus must have studied me somehow, though. Before I could even react, my body was wrapped in a cocoon of cloth, and finally they were able to wrap me in the netting, effectively immobilizing me after all. The substance on my head had sapped my strength was all I could fathom.

Will RynoBoy escape? Will he regain his strength? Will he stop Dr. Daddicus’ evil plan?
Tune in next time. Same RynoBoy time, same RynoBoy Channel!

Epilogue from BrandNewDad:
What had happened was…Ryne has cradle cap or baby eczema on his head. Jamie and I found some cream to put on it to help clear it up. We do this every other day. It seems to be working pretty well. One of the problems, though is to keep Ryne’s hands away from his head, because his hands immediately go to his mouth. To accomplish this, we wrap him in a blanket. As he grows a half inch every day, this becomes more and more difficult. He’s always been a good escape artist with the blanket, but now he’s A LOT more active than he used to be, so it’s virtually impossible to keep his arms still while we wrap him where he can’t get his arms out of the blanket.

Today it took me 5 times to wrap him in his crib before I could even walk away with his arms still wrapped up. However, when I got back just a few seconds later, he had them out already. At the end of my rope, I had to finally take his arms, put them inside of his shirt, and THEN wrap him tight with the blanket. I have never seen a kid that could neither crawl nor walk be so mobile.  But hey, it’s fun times…and my kid thinks I am an evil genius.

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Ever since my son was born, I have shared his thoughts with the world as I translated his Baby-Talk. He’s prone to sarcasm, and he’s great with dead-pan humor delivery. I love translating for him, but I know I won’t have to do so forever. That time may be coming sooner than I thought it would… maybe.

Ryne has said his first word. First of all, I know that he has no concept of what he’s saying, he’s just mimicking what I say. But it’s the fact that he’s already mimicking what I say that is awesome. He’s not even four months old yet. It’s such a simple word, but I am still excited about it.

Ryne’s first word was….hi. I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking he’s just saying baby noises and I am taking it to mean too much. But there are a couple of reasons you would be mistaken…

First of all, I speak baby, remember? When he says “Hi,” it has no baby meaning. Second of all, I set up experiments to see if it was a fluke, or if he was really even mimicking me at all. (I have been saying “hi” to him for a while because it seemed to be the easiest word derived from baby noises he already made. He occasionally makes a  “da” or a “ma” sound, but those are rare right now. He does well with “h” sounds, though, so I thought “hi” would suffice).

Last week, I said “hi” to him like I always do. But this time, he said it back. I got excited, but I know babies make noises all the time that sound like words, so I decided to try it again. So, I said “hi.” And again, he said “hi.” I tried two more times, and he responded again with “hi” both times.

This made me excited, so I called Jamie at work. I put him on speakerphone and  I said, “You want to tell mommy hi? Say Hi.” and, he said “Hi.” I asked him to say it again, and he did…again. Jamie and I both were excited, but she had to get off the phone. I moved on to the next person…Ryne’s Nana, my mom. I called her at work, and once again, he repeated “hi” twice.

I called my dad after I got off the phone with my mom, but alas, Ryne was through talking for the day. I think it was because he was hungry. A couple of days later, Ryne finally said “hi” to my dad on the phone. He’s continued to repeat it ever since the first time he said it, so I don’t think it’s just a coincidence.

I am excited that he’s learning a new language, so I won’t have to translate for him too much longer. Now I move on to the important things, like making sure he says da-da before ma-ma.

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