If parenting is the gift that keeps giving, then potty training is the developmental stage that keeps testing. I say this, because after successfully teaching our son to orate his need to wee wee or poo poo in the toilet at home, my wife and I grabbed our little test subject, strapped him in the car and Continue reading “Potty training: tips for surviving stage two”
It has now been a little more than two weeks since my son embarked on his toilet training journey. And you know what they say: time flies when you spend every waking moment worrying about a tiny person emptying the contents of their bowels or bladder all over Continue reading “11 things I’ve learned during my first two weeks of toilet training”
Kids say the funniest things. Like “lellow” instead of yellow. “Footsie” instead of foot. “Helilopler” instead of helicopter. And “cheese” instead of Continue reading “11 hilarious baby conversations immortalised as text messages”
It has now been nine days since my son began his toilet training adventure. In this week and a bit, there have been highs (magnificently communicated and then implemented poo at the local airport), there have been lows (the state of cubicle my son had to attempt to do his business in at the Hollywood Bowl, East Finchley) and there have been a number of screams from mummy over the following two things. Continue reading “Dear Father Hood: toilet training – why does my son give himself erections and pee everywhere?”
Never mind whether your kid is ready for toilet training – are you ready for it? I ask, because the moment you begin toilet training is the moment you unleash an unforgiving world made up of urine, poo, stress, soiled sofas, bottom wiping and a complicated manoeuvre involving Continue reading “Dear Father Hood: is my kid ready for toilet training?”
Three times last night, four the night before. No, I’m not boasting about my sexual prowess, I’m talking about the amount of times my wife and I had to deal with our toddler falling off his new “big boy” bed (read: cot with one side taken off).
Continue reading “Dear Father Hood: how do you stop a toddler falling off the bed?”
Remember the pre-baby world when leaving the house was easy? I do. And I recall that it involved picking up my keys, opening the door and walking out with a smile on my face. Fast-forward two-and-a-bit years and getting over the doorstep is a military operation featuring numerous shoe changes, a couple of tantrums and much discussion about who has packed what in the baby bag. Continue reading “Dear Father Hood: what should we put in our baby bag?”
In an ideal world, my wife and I would quit our jobs and spend as much time as we could with our kid. In the real world, we’ve got bills to pay. This means we need to work. This means we need to outsource a significant proportion of our son’s childcare. And this means he spends around two-and-a-half days of every week with his grandparents. Continue reading “Are grandparents the new parents?”
There comes a time in almost every parent’s life, when they have to quit moaning about never seeing their old mates, and start making a real effort to find a support network of new friends. For early adopters of this mindset, antenatal groups like the National Childcare Trust (NCT) provide a ready-made group of soon-to-be parents to buddy up with. For later adopters, nursery playdates are Continue reading “Dear Father-Hood: Nursery playdates – is a dad asking a mum a bit weird or completely normal?”
Tears at the nursery door? To be honest, I’ve never heard of this concept, as my son is one of those rock-hard warrior kids. You know the type. They jump out of the car, swagger up to the nursery manager, give them a nod, run in and… …it’s all a big fat lie. Boy did our little man used to cry at the nursery door. He cried, wailed and then sobbed some more. And he did it during every single drop off for well over a year. Continue reading “Dear Father-Hood: why does my kid cry at the nursery door?”
