Brandon Gilbert

Today was my first official Father’s Day as a Dad. I still semi-celebrated last year, cause that little fella was almost out in the world. I honestly didn’t know how I would feel about it. I know how I feel about my own Dad on Father’s Day, but I’ve not been in the position of being the celebrated one.

My wife gave me a great day. I got to take a nap, watch some baseball with my son, have dinner cooked for me, and I got to top it off with a night with the guys playing video games and drinking my favorite Beer…Root.I wanted to write a post about this Father’s Day, but all day words eluded me as to what I wanted to write about. That’s why you’ll see this post on Monday. I wondered if I should give you a “conversations with Dad” post about what Ryne thought of the Holiday. But I decided against that…because he hasn’t been talking as much lately since a lot of the time, we are telling him “no” to something he’s trying to do. Instead I wanted to point out some influential Dads in my life and why I am wishing a Happy Father’s Day to them.

1. My Dad
My Dad and I have not always had the closest relationship. When I was younger, it seemed we didn’t really relate. Don’t get me wrong, I never doubted his love for me, and he told me often, but I just seemed to relate more to my Mom at that time. As I got older and later into High School and into College, my Dad and I just seemed to click. Baseball is what united us at first. We would talk about Chicago Cubs Baseball every day of the Season about what had happened that day, breaking down players’ performances and griping about what managerial moves was…or wasn’t made. This is a ritual we still follow, though our talks have slightly decreased now that I have my own little fella who requires so much attention.

My Dad is always there to give me advice. We don’t always agree on things…because he’s extremely stubborn… and I am definitely my Father’s Son. I always listen to what he has to say and weigh it with what I’ve been thinking myself. Whenever I get down or things go wrong…He’s there to listen.  He knows he can’t make everything better. Being a Dad now myself, I’m sure that the thought of not being able to make everything better for me tears him apart inside. But the fact he’s there to listen…the fact that he’s just there makes him one of my Heroes.

2. My Father-in-Law
My Father-in-Law (FIL) is special to me for several reasons, not the least of which is being half of the couple that brought my beautiful wife into this world. One special example, though is what he did for me on our wedding day. The morning of our wedding, I got extremely nervous. I’m talking nausea, shaking, and sweats. It had nothing to do with Jamie. I’d known I wanted to marry her only two weeks into our relationship…and that was four years prior to our wedding day. No, I think it was because of the ceremony. I know most of you who know me well might find this to be a contradictory statement, but I really don’t like to be the center of attention. I was afraid I would forget words or repeat the wrong words (I only found out a few weeks before the wedding that the saying was “lawfully wedded wife” and not “awfully wedded wife.” Go ahead and laugh…I sure would.)

When your groomsmen are ushers, they have duties to perform before the groom heads out to take center stage. So, this left me in a back room all by myself, alone, without other people…with only my nervousness to keep me company. My FIL happened to come back to that room for some reason…I don’t even remember what it was. But he noticed I was a little out of sorts and asked me what was going on. I told him…and he didn’t even hesitate in his response. He simply came over and put his hand on my shoulder and started praying for me to be calm and to be able to remember everything I need to. That moment has been with me ever since. I barely remember any part of the ceremony…but I remember that moment like it happened four hours ago.

3. My PawPaw Prestridge
My Mother’s Father taught me a lot of things that we extremely useful, though I don’t currently have a use for knowing them. I do believe that one day I will need the knowledge however, and it will be there…all because of him. He taught me about composting and why it’s good for a garden. He also taught me about how to dig ditches so that water actually drains, instead of backing up and washing out your driveway.

He’s also taught me lessons that are useful and that I hope to never have to put into practice in the same way he’s taught me. He’s taught me how to remain faithful in the face of tragedy and the unexpected. You see, my PawPaw has lost two wives to cancer. My Grandmother Betty, died from breast cancer when my Mom was 12. My Granny Gail died from cancer a few years ago. She was the one I knew all my life and it hurt so bad. I don’t have enough space here to tell you what kind of loss that was for our family. But my PawPaw has remained faithful to The Lord even through these tragedies. I imagine my Granny still sits beside him in Church in some form or another. I’ll tell you another thing…you’d be amazed at how one man’s eyes light up at a Great-Grandchild.

4. My Pop Gilbert
My Pop Gilbert passed on something very special to our entire family…Bass Fishing. I know this may seem weird to some of you reading this, but Bass Fishing is something very important in our family. It unites us all in some form or another. My Mom fishes, my cousins fish…my wife fishes. She’s pretty good too…we have several pictures to prove it. I remember going fishing with him when I was younger. He did his best to teach me how to fish…his way. He wanted to help me to unlearn everything my Dad taught me. It didn’t really matter about that, though…it was just fun spending time with him. He also loves having a great-grandson. I think it shaves about 20 years off of him when Ryne’s around.

5. PaPaw Gaston.
PaPaw has pretty much treated me like family since the very first time he met me. The very first time I drove to Trinity, AL to date the lovely Jamie Nelson, his granddaughter, he allowed me to stay in his home. Not only that…they gave me a key! PaPaw is an amazing man. He’s 80, and still goes and works his cattle farm. He’s just a very caring man who helps out anyone in any way he can.

The 5 men have my love, my respect, and anything else they need that I can possible give. These 5 Men definitely deserve a Happy Father’s Day.

By Ryne Gilbert:

Yesterday I ate Spaghetti for the first time. A lot of stuff I eat these days is for the first time. I really liked the Spaghetti a lot. I like chicken fried rice, too. It’s just the right size for me. With all this new and tasty food Mommy and Daddy have given me, I have one thought that keeps creeping in…Why have they been holding out on me? For months and months all I got was milk. Don’t get me wrong…I love Milk, and I thought it was so awesome, but I didn’t know there was anything more than milk. Then they introduced me to steamed apples, spinach, and broccoli. Well, I liked those a lot too, but they were just a compliment to the milk.

I’ll never forget the first time I noticed Mommy and Daddy ate something different than what they gave me. I had just finished some milk, and then I look up and see them eating noodles and sauce and bread sticks. Can you believe I actually gave them the benefit of the doubt? I believed that they were eating poorly and giving me the best they had. I felt bad for them. I wanted them to eat as well as I did. All I could do was just sit and stare as they ate what I thought was crappy food. I can’t believe how I was duped.

I don’t know what changed and made them decide to start giving me the good stuff, but I am pretty upset that I haven’t gotten all of this goodness before now. They told me something about having no teeth and food sensitivities and yadda yadda yadda… It doesn’t matter. It was all a bunch of gobbledygook that basically said, “we didn’t give any to you because we wanted it all to ourselves.” I get that, I just wish they could be honest about it. I don’t know why they think I couldn’t handle it. I mean, after all, I was the one who taught Mommy how to feed me on my very first day here.

I guess I’ll forgive them. They’re human and they’re going to make mistakes…but they’re the only parents I have, so I’ll roll with the punches and go with it. At least they’re giving me the good stuff now. Here’s some pictures of my experience with the spaghetti. By the way…did you know spaghetti was not only a food but also a fashion statement?

BEFORE

AFTER

*Editor’s Note: The sippy cup he uses was mine when I was his age…and it’s full of coconut milk.

We’re only two months from the big 0-1 and it’s unbelievable how much my little guy has grown since he was born. All the new stuff he does on a daily basis just amazes me. He learns new skills so quickly that I can’t even keep up. Here’s a list of new things going on with him:

1. 3 Teeth; Two bottom fronts and top left.
2. Pulling up on his own on objects other than Mom and Dad, though he doesn’t pull up in his crib.
3. He has two toy boxes in the living room. He has quickly graduated from not knowing how to get the toys out to pulling the box over to spill them out to now sitting by the box and pulling them out one at a time.
4. He’s walking like a champ holding onto Mommy or Daddy, but this past couple of weeks has been moving holding onto other things.
5. He’s been singing along with the radio, though without words…mostly humming.
6. He’s starting to get the hang of waving bye-bye.
7. He’s learning to clap and recognizes the word “clap” from our Your Baby can Read DVDs.
8. He has learned the “High Five” and enjoys it quite a bit….unless he’s in an ill mood.
9. He’s feeding himself well with finger foods and occasionally with a spoon.
10. He, unlike his father, apparently likes Mexican food, and had some chicken, refried beans, and guacamole from Las Maracas this past Sunday. He ate as much as his Mommy would give him, and since it was her idea, I made sure she was on Diaper Duty for the rest of the day.

It’s so funny how fast time goes by, and I know it will only continue to do so. I mean, he’s still in diapers, and I’m already hearing verses from ” Cat’s in the Cradle” in the back of my mind. I’m really excited for all his progress, but I’m struggling to keep up. He’s a lot more mobile and demands a lot more of my time, and so I haven’t updated this as much. I’ll try to be better about that. He also has entered into a phase full of tantrums…speaking of which…

Some of our friends know her as Jamie. Two people know her as Daughter. Two people know her as Daughter-in-Law. To regular readers of this blog, she is TheBrandNewMom. But to the most important person who calls her something, she is “Ma-muh.”

She is my wife, and pretty much the rock of our family, aside from Jesus of course. She’s humble, caring, and Freaking Gorgeous. I definitely out-kicked my coverage, if you know what I mean. She makes things better just by being around. There’s no debating it. TheBrandNewSon came into this world knowing that Ma-muh makes things better. When we’re alone sometimes and things don’t seem to be going his way…who does he want? That’s right…Ma-muh. Don’t get me wrong…he’ll say my name all day long and smile and laugh with me, but when something needs to be done or he doesn’t feel his best…he knows who to call for.

She makes things better for me as well. As I have nursed my bruised ego for these past 11 months, she has been there to help me pick it right back up. For someone who writes many words during the week, words still fail me to describe her awesomeness. She will think this is all unnecessary and untrue. She’ll probably get a little upset at me with such a Public Display of Affection. But, I can’t help it…I love this woman, and so does our son. And it’s because we have him that today is HER day. Happy Mother’s Day, Jamie. You’re the best…and thanks for sharing life with me.

P.S.  , b bf b[’\fgdfdzsddgjjjjhjygxdfvghuui ioio i (That’s Ryne’s way of saying he loves you too…he typed it himself!)

It all began with Pavlov’s dog. Ring a bell, and the dog begins to salivate. So it goes with Ice Cream trucks. The difference is, there is apparently no repetition needed to train a child to have a fit at the sound of the Ice Cream Truck. There must be a strand of DNA in babies that responds when they hear it.

Ryne has never had Ice Cream and there is no possible way he even knows what it is. Saturday an Ice Cream truck came through our complex. He heard the siren call oh so faintly and began jittering and reaching towards the door and generally pitching a fit to go to the door. It could just be that he liked the music, but there are a dozen things around the house that make music and he doesn’t react like that to any of them.

So…a mystery remains until the next time an ice cream truck comes through.

Dad told you guys about my first Christmas, and since I’m getting a little older (I’m almost a whole 9 months old), I figured I would just tell you about my first Easter myself.  Oh, and by the way…if you want to keep up with my thoughts and what I’m doing day to day…I have my own Twitter Feed now.  But…back to Easter. I didn’t know what to expect since it’s only my first one. It’s been one of the most eventful days I’ve ever had…and it’s only 9:45 AM.  I’ll try to give you a rundown of the events so you can get a glimpse into my crazy life.

It all begins with the shopping. I’ve had my Easter outfit for weeks. Mommy and Daddy just love it. I don’t know what’s so special about it…it’s just clothes, but apparently I’m adorable in it. I still don’t know how this is different from all my other clothes, because I make everything look good. Anyway, we went down to Alabama to Pelham to spend Easter with my Aunt Tiana and got there on Saturday. We played some games, mom put me in this chair that ate me and swallowed me down (BrandNewDad Note: It was a beanbag chair). Mommy and Daddy played something they called pool, but there was no water at all, only a table with balls that they hit around. Nana T and Papaw JimBob (BrandNewDad Note: Teresa and James, Jamie’s parents) got here, and we went to a place called Longhorn Steakhouse. My best guess is that this is where those Texas guys ended up after Bama beat ‘em up in January. I was sleepy, so I just chilled and chewed on my keys. I still don’t know what they go to…but they feel so good on my gums.

We went back home and I played for a little while, but Mommy laid me down for bed. It was only then that she informed me we were getting up at 4:00 AM to go to a Sunrise service. I was like, “WHAT?” She said we were going to the Cemetary where Uncle Todd was buried for a Sunrise Easter Service. I don’t know what she was thinking. The only people in Cemeteries at that time are Vampires just getting home from a night out. Since I am only 9 months old, though, I don’t really get a say, so I did what any normal 9 month old would do: I cried…loudly. It wasn’t over anything in particular, I just wanted to be sure Mommy and Daddy would be as exhausted as I knew I would be. We all finally went to sleep around 11:45.

4:00 came early. It’s one thing if I wake up hungry at 4:00 AM, but it’s a completely different thing to be snatched away from a wonderful sleep. Mommy gave me some Breakfast and then went to take a shower while I watched some music videos. I’m not sure I was really supposed to be watching them, but I’m sure the people on the TV shouldn’t have been doing what they were doing…especially on the Lord’s day. To make matters worse, I didn’t even get to wear my special clothes.

We went to the cemetary and it was still dark when we got there. Lots of people came and then the service started. The sun didn’t rise, so I asked Daddy. He said that the sun did rise, but the clouds were blocking it. I thought that was awfully rude of the clouds. He also explained it was a SONrise service, because Jesus, God’s Son rose from the dead on Easter. Dad had explained Easter to me before today, and I am very happy about two things: 1. I’m glad my Dad would never let anything like that happen to me. and 2. I am very glad that Jesus’ Daddy did.

The service started and this man led us in singing. I thought he sounded very funny. Daddy told me that anyone singing to Jesus was making a joyful noise to Him. I don’t know what he was hearing, but I’d have given my best friend Jimmy to have Lewis and Mary Lea leading us at that very moment (BrandNewDad Note:Our worship leaders at our church). He hit one note that chased off some geese as they honked angrily. Then the speaker did his thing, and it was good, but by this point I was so tired from getting up so early that I started to get a little cranky and made Mommy hold me. Lots of people told Mommy I was cute, and I never get tired of hearing that. After the service we dropped by Uncle Todd’s gravesite to talk to him a little bit. I drifted off to sleep. The next thing I know, we’re in the middle of Willie’s house of chicken and waffles eating breakfast (BrandNewDad Note: it was actually Cracker Barrel).

I’m sure more will happen today, so maybe this is just part 1. Have a Happy Easter!!!

I’ve had a pretty good grasp on the English language for many years now. I’ve been through17 years of school and at least a thousand church services. I’ve attended dozens of seminars and spoken on the phone with people all over the U.S. and Canada. I’ve watched way more TV than I should and listened to waaaaay too much talk radio. With all that I’ve heard in my lifetime, the sweetest and best words have only come within the last several weeks. That’s when my little fella decided he wanted to say “Dada.”

I was thrilled when he started making the noise, but I knew it was just that: a noise. Then one day it just clicked for him and he looked up at me and pointed and said it. My heart flooded with joy because I knew that he knew who I was. At the same time, he learned “Mama” as well. He also learned “Nana,” which is what both his grandmothers go by.

He also learned really quickly that we really responded when he called us by our name. Now when he’s hungry or has a dirty diaper he doesn’t just start crying, he puts a parent’s name with it. He cries out DaaaaaaaDaaaaa….which is slowly becoming Daaaadddyyyyy. Or he cries out, Mommmmmmaaaaaaa. It’s fun to listen to him when we lay him down for a nap or to go to bed at night if he’s not particularly sleepy. He cries out, “Daaaaadddyyy.” No response from us, so then he yells “Mommmmaaaaa.” When he still gets no response, he even gives “Nannnnnnnaaaaa” a shot. I find this to be quite humorous since neither Nana lives close. It’s like somewhere deep down he just knows that one of his Nanas would pick him up and give him all the attention he wants at that moment. Is that in our DNA? It sure seems that way, because that seems early in life to learn that lesson.

Speaking of parental manipulation, He’s got it all figured out. He knows that with me if he’s hungry or has a dirty diaper or gets sleepy and cries or calls my name…I will rectify the problem. He also knows that I won’t let him just cry because he wants to be held instead of laid down in the floor (he’s got to have some tummy time so he can crawl and learn to walk), so he doesn’t really try to pull stuff over on me. As for Momma…he’s figured out that if the tears collect in his eyes a little bit, well, Momma’s putty. He’s going to get his way….some of the time. There’s times when I almost have to physically restrain her, but she does somehow manage to summon the courage to let him do some things on his own. This isn’t easy to do, but it’s necessary for him to grow the way he needs to.

The best part of him being able to speak a little is that we can now have conversations in English. We’ve been having conversations in Baby language ever since he was born. My translation for you guys is what fuels a lot of the blog posts. He’s been able to say “Hey” and “Hi” ever since he was about 4 months. He knows what it means, too. If you come into a room, and he feels like talking to you, he’ll tell you “Hi.” Today we were having such a conversation. I would tell him “Hey Buddy,” and he would tell me “Hey Dada.”

Ryne will hardly do anything on demand but eat…and even that’s becoming a little more complicated, but I was lucky enough to grab just a little bit of our conversation on audio. You will need Quicktime to be able to play it. If you don’t have it, you can download Quicktime by clicking HERE. It’s free and don’t worry if you don’t use a MAC. It works for PC as well. To listen to a little bit of our conversation, click HERE.

There are many firsts in a child’s life, and probably one of the hardest is the first funeral. I am glad that Ryne is too young to realize what’s going on, though. Last week, we went down to Alabama because Jamie’s Uncle Todd passed away. It’s never easy when someone you love dies, and it’s even worse when it’s completely unexpected and it’s something that you find yourself playing “what if?” to try to understand what happened.

There was a lot of sorrow of course, but the little guy helped make some of the proceedings a little easier to handle. We brought him to the visitation on Wednesday night and he was so good. He smiled at everyone, and much to my delight showed off his new-found fondness for saying “DaDa.” He let many people hold him and he just smiled and “talked” to them like he had known them forever. I know his Nana T – Jamie’s Mom, Teresa, was glad he was there. She doesn’t get to see him nearly as much as she would like to. Todd was Teresa’s brother and I hope that having her grandson there made things just a little more bearable.

I try to make all of these blog posts be as funny as possible, because we all need a little laughter. This post is a little more serious, because death is more of a serious matter. I written “Todd’s Story” to share with you here. I was given most of this in a dream and I intended it for my church. We have planted a church in East Nashville called Restoration Church, and one of our core values is to be “Authentic in Community,” that is to say that we create an environment where others feel free to share their burdens with the rest of us without feeling judgment or that they have to face things alone. This is not the way Jesus intended His church to be. I sent this to Todd’s wife to get her approval to share with my church. She has asked me to please share it, so that’s what I am doing here. While the letter below references our church specifically, I believe it extends to The Church as a whole.

Todd’s Story:

Todd was a man who loved the Lord with all his heart. He took the love he had and felt from the Lord and used it to love his fellow man. Todd was a most generous man who it seemed never met a stranger and certainly never met anyone he wouldn’t help if he only knew how. He was a very active member at a well-known Baptist church in Birmingham, AL. I personally entered into Todd’s life 10 years ago when I started dating his niece. From the very beginning, though my wife and I had not yet decided to marry, Todd treated me as if I were already in the family. Holidays (Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas) were the only times we seemed to be able to get together, but we made the most of that time, tossing the football and learning how to kick field goals together while we discussed life. We all thought Todd was married to his job, as he was over 40 and had never met “the one.” Then, one Christmas about 3 years ago, we learned that Todd had met “the one.” She was a wonderful, godly woman with two beautiful children which gave Todd an “instant family.” Todd loved those kids as his own, and even adopted her son to make him his own. Todd loved his new family, his brother and sister, his parents, his nieces and nephews, and genuinely had the love that God calls us to give to our neighbors…loving them as we love ourselves.

But Todd had another side. Todd had a side that was lonely and depressed. He experienced excruciating anxiety that made him fear life itself. He prayed for healing from God. He lived with this illness for 25 years, but never lost faith that God would give him healing.  Todd had gotten to the point where he had to muster all of his strength to make it through the day. When the day was over, he shut himself off from everything hoping to shut out the fear he lived with constantly. He was blessed to have found his new wife, who was anointed by the Lord to be a confidant and the only person aside from Doctors that Todd was able to trust with that side of him. She walked with him through his darkest hours. In the end, all the medications and doctors could not help him overcome the darkness that had taken hold of him so tightly. This past Monday, Todd took his own life. In his letter he left behind, he detailed the fear he felt just trying to make it through his day. He said that even though he knew it was a sin to do what he was doing, he felt that the only healing he would ever experience would be to “go home.”

Anyone who knew Todd, including his closest friends, family and the pastor of his church thought they heard the news wrong. It couldn’t possibly be true. We knew the fun-loving, humorous, loving Todd. None of us knew the Todd that lived with such pain. This is where I pray that we can all learn a lesson from Todd, who would have it no other way.

Hebrews 10:23-25 (NKJV) says “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Our church has been planted as a Church who would love our neighbors as ourselves. One of the foundations of our church is that we would create a safe haven where transparency would make it possible for us all to share each others’ burdens in prayer and love. Todd never found an environment where he felt he could share his struggles and still be loved and appreciated in spite of those struggles. He lived silently in pain for more than 20 years until God sent him his wife who would be his only confidant in that struggle until the end. If we are truly to be the church God would have us to be, we have to learn that there are many, many Todds in this community and in our lives, and if we truly love our neighbors as we love ourselves, we will be obedient to the Lord. We will make ourselves a safe haven where people know that they are free to let us share in their burdens, knowing there will be no judging, only Love. I pray that we can help those around us who are struggling to have a different ending to their story.

I’ve had this Blog for 7 months now. This is the longest I’ve ever kept a blog up and running. I get lots of inspiration though, from my little guy. I appreciate all the kind word of encouragement, and most importantly I appreciate you just for coming and reading. I am thinking about printing some t-shirts to sell on here. Here is the first one, and I have a couple more to come. Click on the picture to get a better look. Leave a Comment and let me know what you think.

So, where do my visitors come from? Below is a list. Let me know who is who!

Cordova, Alabama
Madison, Alabama
Warrior, Alabama
Northport, Alabama
Jasper, Alabama
Florence, Alabama
Decatur, Alabama
Pinson, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Wellington, Alabama
Opelika, Alabama
Stevenson, Alabama
Sheffield, Alabama
Clanton, Alabama
Bessemer, Alabama
Empire, Alabama
Studley, Warwickshire, United Kingdom
Starkville, Mississippi
Arlington Heights, Illinois
Laurel, Maryland
Jersey City, New Jersey
Chicago, Illinois
Nashville, Tennessee
Douglasville, Georgia
Nis, Serbia Proper, Serbia
Franklin, Tennessee
Palestine, Texas
Rome, Georgia
Saint Louis, Missouri
Treviso, Veneto, Italy
Mississippi State, Mississippi
Tucker, Georgia
Lexington, North Carolina
Goodlettsville, Tennessee
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Kaunas, Kauno Apskritis, Lithuania
Madison, Mississippi
Columbus, Georgia
Norcross, Georgia
Ellijay, Georgia
Alpharetta, Georgia
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Zvolen, Banska Bystrica, Slovakia
Banská Bystrica, Banska Bystrica, Slovakia
Söderkulla, Southern Finland, Finland
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Rochester, New York
White House, Tennessee
Mableton, Georgia
Charlotte, North Carolina
Taipei, T’ai-pei, Taiwan
Caribou, Maine
Stratford, Connecticut
Fall River, Massachusetts
Malibu, California
Seattle, Washington
Lawrenceville, Georgia
Plano, Texas
Greenock, Inverclyde, United Kingdom
Beijing, China
Dayton, Ohio
Jersey City, New Jersey
Beijing, China
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Surabaya, Jawa Timur, Indonesia
Baltimore, Maryland
Huntington, West Virginia
Edgewater, Maryland
Lilburn, Georgia
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Huntsville, Alabama
Adger, Alabama
Hendersonville, Tennessee
Singapore, Singapore
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Irvine, California
Atlanta, Georgia
Adana, Turkey
Runnemede, New Jersey
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Somerset, Kentucky
Mcdonough, Georgia
Todmorden, York, United Kingdom
Morris, New York
Mount Juliet, Tennessee
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Bronx, New York
Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
Czech Republic
Tianjin, China
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Willis, Texas
Los Angeles, California
Saint Louis, Missouri
Denver, Colorado
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Houston, Texas
Columbia, Tennessee
Corona, California
Johnson City, Tennessee
Vincennes, Indiana
Austin, Texas
Ridgecrest, California
Silverdale, Washington
Casper, Wyoming,
Conroe, Texas
Mcdonough, Georgia
Las Piñas, Rizal, Philippines
Pleasanton, California
Fort Myers, Florida
Rancho Santa Margarita, California
Flushing, New York
Bakersfield, California

As a parent, you know that sometimes you have to put one over on your kids to help them learn. We’re born into this world strong-willed and until you get to the point of “I’m the parent, that’s why,” you sometimes have to use a little a little trickery to get them things they need.

I told you about my use of sleight of hand to get Ryne to eat his veggies, and I’m sure a lot of you have your own stories of how you’ve had to get your kids to do what you needed them to. One new thing that I’m trying with Ryne is to get him to stand more on his own. He’s doing that pretty well, and I’ve moved on to the next step which is trying to get him to pull up on his own to stand. The way I devised to help make this fun for him is to play “Fort.”

The first time I realized he could enjoy playing Fort even being so young is that I built one out of pillows on mine and Jamie’s bed for him to play in. I just wanted to see what his reaction would be. He enjoyed the construction of the Fort almost as much as playing in it. He loved for me to throw the pillows so that he could feel the “whoosh” as the pillows fell beside him. He laughed and laughed as each pillow fell into place.

Once the Fort was constructed, he rolled from side to side and climbed the pillows, and wrestled with them. It was the most fun he’s had in his life I believe. It probably has to do with Jamie and I having a King-Sized bed. He had lots of room to move around and explore. I decided to capitalize on this fun and create a Fort for him in his crib to see if he could start pulling up and standing up more on his own.

My plan worked to perfection. The first time I stood him him up, he held onto the Crib for about 2 minutes. I guess he got tired and he let go and fell. This is where my plan took a detour. He realized that the falling was way more fun than standing up (and who wouldn’t want to fall into a pile of pillows that are all the size of your body?). As soon as he would fall, he was ready for me to pull him back up to the crib so he could fall again. Here’s some video so you can see:

In the end, he didn’t pull up on his own, but…he did start sitting down in the crib by holding onto the side instead of just plopping down, so that’s some progress. We had a blast playing Fort, so I get to have fun with my son, and hopefully teach him to pull up at the same time.