Life Without Newfoundlands

This year so far has been, what I would say very unkind. We have seen the passing of our two Newfoundland dogs which has had a devastating effect on our day to day routine and we are finally getting back to some semblance of normality.The first few weeks after the first one had to be put down, due to terminal cancer, Jack just assumed that he had gone to the vet for a check up. In his own time Jack asked, where is "Biggles," he was his favorite, a big Landseer weighing 145lbs. A temperament better than you could wish for, he was 11 years and 3 months when he went, an old age for a large dog.Anyway, explaining to Jack the difference between life and death in this case was extremely hard on everyone, it is only now that I can talk about it in any depth. As any animal lover would appreciate, it is like losing a son. We still had our first Newfoundland, "Barney" he was getting to a ripe old age of thirteen.He had his own problems, due to his age he was having trouble getting around. We used a harness that you placed underneath him to lift him up to take him out to do his thing. Now with the passing of his half brother he was very lethargic over the next couple of months. Eating was becoming a problem and he had to be coaxed for the slightest thing.One early morning we noticed blood coming from his mouth, his whole right side had suddenly swelled up and on further investigation it was diagnosed he had cancer of the mouth. No doubt the stress of his buddy going had only accelerated the condition. With his age of 13 years and 2 months there was not an option, we had to put him down as well. From having to step over these large mounds of dog laying on the floor to nothing is a huge change. Jack and his sister Madeline cannot quite comprehend what has happened with this sudden life change although Jack does mention that both Biggles and Barney were very sick and died at the vet.Like I said, the household has settled into its new rhythm with Jack mentioning on occasions that when he gets older he is going to have a small dog. Now does that mean he is looking forward to a puppy?Just incase we've been checking out the Dog Forums for a little insight into different breeds but we will always be a Newfoundland family. Yes, they slobber and shake making all sorts of mess. They are forever shedding fur and rearranging furniture because of their size but as a family animal you cannot beat the temperament. It will be a while before we jump into another pet but it's always best to be prepared.

Posted on: 20 June 2006 | 10:56 am

Flu Season is upon us once Again!

The posts have been few and far between as of late. The family is in that throws of a vicious circle with the flu bug that mutates every time it finds a new host even though everyone has had their flu shots. The only good thing is, it isn't as harsh as it normally would be. It started off with Jack's sister Maddie, she's only a year old, puke every time she fed resulting in her being limited to only the recommended electrolytes drink to stabilize her. After four days of minimal sleep the symptoms are wearing off, but in the mean time the incubation period on Jack is in the works. Bedding is constantly being run through the washing machine after numerous early morning wake up calls and I fear that this is going to go on for a long time.Summer cannot come quick enough, each winter sees the viruses getting stronger or is it that I am getting older and less resilient!

Posted on: 20 January 2006 | 10:30 am

Jackson Hits it Big with Santa!

Christmas day arrives and Jackson is having a good sleep in or so we think. Normally he is up and running at about 6:30am so when 7:15am rolls around we are a little concerned as he normal hits our bed with plenty of noise. Little do we know that he is already up, standing at the top of the stairs looking down at the Christmas tree where his bike is situated.There is no sound coming from him, he is totally awe struck as he looks at his new Haro bicycle. Needless to say all other presents are secondary and it is the case of when can I get out and ride it!

Posted on: 6 January 2006 | 3:22 pm

Disneyland Snow

With Christmas just around the corner and present shopping in full swing, outstanding vacation days always becomes an issue at this time of year. I'm trying to use up what is left of my vacation for the year and during the weekend the discussion was about when to go to Disneyland to give Jack his first experience. Well, yesterday turned out to be real special day for Jack and his sister Maddie, the time was right to take half a day's vacation and this would suit the amount of time that we though would be achievable with a three and a half year old and a one year old.Working the morning and getting back home for 1pm worked out fine, a quick lunch and off to Disneyland we go, getting there at 2:15pm. The park closes at 6pm so that gave us just under four hours. We decided to get the Southern California annual pass for all of us and one with parking to get the benefit over the coming year even though there are numerous "blackout days." It wasn't the cheapest pass and it allowed us to go on Sundays for the majority of the year.Jack's first impression was "Wow" and then he saw the train, of course he is already Thomas the Tank engine mad so this would be our first stop. Would you believe it, we're queuing up for the next ride and the train is full, over the intercom comes the statement, "The train will be at the station for an indefinite period of time." In other words the train had broken down. This is not a good sign for Jack but off we go and as luck would have it the parade was circling the main street island.Up on my shoulders he goes and this keeps him focused, then off to the rides we go and Toontown it is. As you can imagine the time just flies by and I'm beginning to ache because of carrying Jack everywhere. The Christmas parade is a gem and goes for half an hour which brings us to the last hour before the park closes. Time for one last ride in the rocketship and then it's over to "It's a small world" for the fireworks and the snow.Jack's a little concerned, "I don't like the fireworks" but let's just see, they're high in the sky so it won't be too scary. We get him to hold out until the fireworks start and after all that fuss he loves it, what a display! As soon as that show finishes the artificial snow starts, foam is dispersed to represent snow and it gives the illusion of real snow, absolutely superb. Jack loved it, Maddie loved it, what a great afternoon for the family. Everyone is totally wiped out. We all file out of the park to the truck, on the way home it is quiet, except for the deep sounds of children sleeping! PHEW!!!

Posted on: 7 December 2005 | 1:12 pm

Monkey Bar Business

Our Jack has been full of himself of late. The climbing equipment at the pre-school always offers a new challenge to him, he has to do everything himself without any help. The monkey bars is one of those things!The time was coming to the end of his Thursday class and as always the children are playing in the grounds of the school. Jack's on the monkey bars and he will not give up until he can master them and swing himself from one bar to the next over a ten foot span. Well he is not the only child who has this in mind, instead of taking turns which the teachers always enforce, they are horsing around grabbing each other to get the next go. Jack is on the beginning of the bars hanging when he is grabbed by the legs and as a three and a half year old his hands are not quite large enough to completely circle the bar. This sudden movement makes his hands slip and down he crashes with the back of his head hitting the step-up to the bars.All I can say is, it was fortunate that his mother was there early to collect him as she witnessed the tail end of the incident. She was able to scoop him up and take him to the nearest medical center where he had eight staples inserted to seal up the wound. Fortunately he is none the worst for wear but it could have been a lot worse. Always make sure that you have all the necessary information in case of a sudden emergency and be sure to point out the short comings of this type of horse play. I know it's difficult with children of this age, they do have a mind of their own and trying to keep their attention when explaining these type of pitfalls can be exasperating. A week has past and the staples have now been removed, there is only minor weaping from the wound and of course Jack's back to his old ways once again.

Posted on: 21 November 2005 | 5:25 pm

Considering Education Early.

Jack's education is paramount in this day and age of technology, before he was born a lot of research was made into the "What If" scenarios for when he became of an age where he wanted or needed to go to a university of his choice. The long hours spent surfing the internet for leads for the best programs available, the costs and saving programs were mind boggling. During the course of the research I stumbled across this site Golden State Scholarshare. Living in Southern California it seemed the best thing to invest in.Now, Jack is still only three, coming on four so there is still a lot of time before he will be making those decisions but the ground work has been done. His educational funds are under way but you can never tell what the future will bring. The cost of education increases at a rate that out paces pay raises, home prices are at record levels and natural disasters take their toll on everyone's finances so plan early.Remember education is one of the most important considerations for your family and researching for information on degrees from top-tiered online and campus-based colleges and universities can take its toll. Checkout Golden State Scholarshare and see what it can do for you.

Posted on: 27 October 2005 | 1:47 pm

My First Car or is it a Stroller?

As you may recall in a previous post I spoke about the invaluable book called BABY BARGAINS SECRETS, when we were selecting the infant seat for our vehicle, once again it was used to select the baby stroller. By using this book a lot of the research had already been done and a short list of suitable strollers was drawn up. To get a better visual of the selected strollers, the next step was to go online and checkout the strollers. Amazon.com for Babies R Us, Sears, Burlington and then Bergstroms. OK, now we have a feel for what to look for, so it's off to the stores next.After visiting numerous stores such as Babies R Us, Sears and Burlington Coat Factory we eventually ended up at Bergstroms. It was here that we selected the stroller that we eventually purchased, a Peg Perego Milano XL. This stroller had all the necessary features and was robust enough for the daily beating it was sure to take in being folded up and put into the truck numerous times a day.The beauty of this Cadillac of strollers is that it also doubles up as a baby carriage. In Jack's case, this was perfect for sleeping in without being disturbed by our rather large hounds! With a reversible handle bar you can have the baby facing you or away from you, which always helps when the wind is blowing in your face!!It folds up very compact for such a large stroller, and is remarkably light for it's size. The wheels are made totally of rubber instead of getting the normal plastic with a small band of rubber. This stroller has been in use for over three years and though it is showing signs of wear it is still sturdy enough for its second tour of duty.Jack being the expert on how to negotiate that stroller is now showing his sister how to climb aboard!!!

Posted on: 19 October 2005 | 2:03 pm

Transportation 101, New Tahoe!

OK let's fast forward to the present day, Dad's under pressure to buy a new vehicle. His managerial position dictates that he must have a current vehicle every two years or forfeit his driving privileges, that is, no company car and no gas for work. Well this is a tough decision for him, let alone a bit of a cheek. Mom doesn't work anymore, well not at a company anyway, she is fulltime looking after me and my sister so the company feels dad needs a car for mom every two years. With the gas prices as they are I guess it's a close call as to what he is going to do, after all the new car payment would cover the gas cost but then the car insurance would go up because of the mileage.He's been checking out car prices and trade-in prices and I was wondering if we were ever going to get going. Well, off we go in dads pick-up truck, moms driving. Dads cleaned up our older Tahoe, hopefully to get the best price. The bottom has dropped out of the second hand car market because of all the employee discounts so he's set with his minimum price for our Tahoe.Mom has decided that it's got to be another Tahoe because of all the stuff she has to cart around for us and a light color so it doesn't show the dirt so much. We get to the dealers and dad knows the routine, get the price for our vehicle first then look for a new truck for us. WOW!! We got close to our price so dad's happy! Now we can look for our new truck.We want a 2006 white Z71 as far as dad was concerned and mom had agreed at first but now with all the colors mom's not so sure. Great, I get in the golf cart with dad and the salesman and we whiz through the dealers lot with the truck bleeping in the distance. Here it is, a brand new truck, WOW! The salesman says "follow me to the front of the dealership"I get in the passenger side and dad belts me up for the short distance and what's good on the latest Tahoe is, the airbag is only activated with weight over 90 lbs, so I'm safe in the front seat for the short journey.Take a look mom, what do you think? Hummm, I not too sure. Well what don't you like?I don't like the gray plastic trim pieces, it was OK on our truck because it was black but on white it looks, WEIRD. Let me check out the LT truck option, says mom. Back goes the salesman into the vast array of vehicles with the latest choice again bleeping in the distance. He turns up with the White LT Tahoe and mom takes it for a test drive. "Well", dad says. "I'm not sure, what other colors have you got" says mom. We start looking around and the salesman points out a 2005 Z71 Tahoe with bermuda blue metallic paint. It was fully loaded and had a $6000 discount or $5000 discount plus 20 inch wheel and tire package with a billet grille. JACKPOT!!! Mom loved the color and with BIG rims. Dad would rather of had a 2006 model but you can't beat the wheel and tire package and billet grille for $1000. SOLD. Now the new truck is at home and the best thing is, I get to watch Thomas the Tank Engine in the new DVD player. YEAH!!!!

Posted on: 8 October 2005 | 10:35 pm

Two Weeks and Counting.

Well Jack's dropped into a nice sleep pattern, 11pm feed, 3am and then again at 7am. With the intermittent wake-up call from the dogs, anywhere from 1:30am to 4:30am, our sleeping consists of three hour cat naps!!The two week check-up is here in no time and we're all wondering how much weight Jack has lost and is he putting it on again. It's a well known fact that a newborn baby will loose weight until the breast milk kicks in.With anticipation we're off to the pediatrician for the check-up. We park up and out we all get, Jack's in the car seat asleep, baby bag filled to the brim with all sorts of baby paraphernalia plus THE bottle. The room is on the second floor so into the elevator we get for the short ride up. It's easy to find and because it's Jacks first visit we get to go there before the RUSH of sick children and babies arrive.OK we're signed in, the health insurance card is photocopied and everything is set. Jack's still sleeping. Jack gets his call and into the small room we go. The nurse says "strip him down." As you well know these rooms are not as warm as you would like especially for Jack who is snug as snug can be. Once the clothing starts to be removed, the stretching starts and his weary little eyes open. We're down to the onesies now and the temperature change is apparent by Jacks face. Off it comes, then the diaper, then the WAILING starts, "my goodness" says the doctor as she enters the door.She takes Jack and checks all his limbs, listens to his heart, checks his ears and then it's weigh in time. Onto the scales he goes and with that sudden rush of coldness from the scale there is no stopping him, PEEEEEEEE, this fountain of water is all over Jack, the scales, the examination couch. BOY!! What a mess, but the good thing is he's only down by three ounces from his birth weight!!

Posted on: 22 September 2005 | 6:35 pm

Oh! For a Perfect Night's Sleep

The home coming, after the initial shock for the dogs, turned out to be reasonably calm. Dad had made sure that the house was still respectable when mom returned, after all it was only two days. The rest of the day is spent taking it easy, dad's doing what it takes to supply the food that mom wants and Jack is sleeping soundly. The compulsory four hour feeds kick in but Jack is beginning to get irritated. He's feeding but is he getting enough, is the standard question that we ask ourselves. Unless we weigh him after every feed there's no telling how much he's taken in.Jack eventually settles down again and mom retorts that she's feeling like a milk truck.Evening is here and by 10pm everyone is ready to call it a night. The transferring of Jack to the cradle is no problem, he carries on sleeping. Within half an hour the crying starts, feed time already! It's been less than an hour!OK let me feed him again, but within five minutes he's sleeping once more. Back into the cradle he goes and everyone tries to settle down. The grandfather clock chimes 2am and Jack has been up three times by now, everyone is sleeping in three quarter of an hour bursts and it's getting to be a LONG night.Let's get the pacifier out maybe he'll sleep a little longer, so the pacifier is sterilized and it is placed within reach, ready for the next wake up call. At last he's settled down, WOOF, WOOF, Oh no! It's 4:30am and the dogs need to go out for a potty break, I just don't believe it!! Wearily dad gets up to let the dogs out, then climbs back in bed. Tap, tap, tap, the dogs have done their thing and now they want back in. "I'll just leave them out" says dad. Tap, tap, WOOF, tap, tap, WOOF, WOOF, dad throws back the covers and some words come out of his mouth that I don't understand yet and storms downstairs to let the ANIMALS in again.Oh Man!! "This is just the first night!" exclaims dad, as he pull himself between the sheets once more.

Posted on: 15 September 2005 | 2:34 pm

Meet the Dogs!!!

The ride from the hospital was uneventful much to everyone's relief. Jack settled into the car seat like a pro and slept the half an hour along the Pacific Coast Highway. We get to our complex and once we go through the security gates it's less than a minute to the house.Dad pulls into the drive and it's everybody out and into the house, everyone lets out a big SIGH and drops into the couches. It's quite peaceful, the dogs are in the yard at the moment. After five minute pass the dogs start their normal antics of tap, tapping, on the door wanting to come in, after all they hadn't seen mom for a couple of days and they were eager to smother her in kisses.OK it's time to let them in, the door's opened and in they fly, a total disregard of manners, it's a free for all. There is the initial greeting and then they get the scent of something that is not normal. They sense the cradle and there's something inside, their curiosity gets the better of them and they start nudging the cradle to get a little closer to whatever it is that's inside. What you have to realize is, these dogs are not small, they're Newfoundlands!! The bouncing of the cradle from the dogs instantly wakes up Jack and this little high pitched cry sounds from within. This instantly stops the dogs in their tracks, then there's this loud WOOF! This just intensifies the wailing from Jack, as we try to reassure the dogs that everything is OK. We know the dogs are good with kids but how will they be towards Jack?Well, we soon found out, as they covered him in a slimy drool with their lick of approval. Welcome to the world of DOGGY DROOL!!!!

Posted on: 10 September 2005 | 12:13 am

Trucks and Baby Seats.

After the compulsory two day stay at the hospital it's time for Jack to venture into the whole wide world. Everyone is dressed for the occasion and mom is sitting in the wheelchair ready for the journey down to the truck. Jack has his all-in-one outfit on, just to make sure he's warm. The cart is loaded with best wishes paraphernalia and it's more of a parade as we make our way to the escalator.Once on the ground floor, dad has to maneuver the Chevy out of the car park and as you know with hospital car parks it's always jammed full!! Well, leading up to this joyous occasion, a lot of ground work had to be done to checkout the best baby seat to cart Jack back to his home. That's where the BABY BARGAINS SECRETS book came in handy. It covered everything from cribs, bedding, clothes, baby proofing and yes, CAR SEATS. Well, we went for the Britax Roundabout, this seat carries a baby up to 30lbs rear facing and 40 lbs forward facing and has a built in recline, built-in locking clip and snap-together chest clip. Phew! As far as we were concerned the Rolls Royce of baby seats.By now dad had the truck positioned outside the hospital automatic doors, out comes mom and now's the time for Jack to be placed into the car seat. Dad picks up Jack and hoping the adjustment is correct places him into the car seat. Wow!! It swamps him but fortunately the settings were on the smallest and it fitted him satisfactory for the journey home. With Jack now safely on board, mom in the seat next to Jack and all buckled up safe, dad loads up all the presents and flowers and the final farewells are said to all the hospital staff involved. Dad climbs aboard, buckles up and turns the key, the Chevy rumbles into life and off we go, slowly to a whole new beginning.

Posted on: 8 September 2005 | 11:08 pm

All Natural or Formula?

This is the million dollar question that faces all new mothers and fathers alike. Mother wants to start off in the right direction and Jack is only too willing to try and latch on. This may appear simple but as all new mothers know, it's not as simple as that!It was mighty awkward, Jack's pitching a fit and it's 3am in the nursery. Mom wants to breast feed and the milk hasn't come in yet. She's still recovering from the last twenty hours of labor.The whole nursery's awake now with a dozen babies testing their lungs. Jacks got a following already with everyone crying in sympathy. "We'll have to try him on the formula," said the nurse in charge. These two ounce pre-made formula bottles courtesy of Similac are an easy substitute but by the look on Jack's face and the spit out of the milk, he did NOT like it at all. He managed to take an ounce but it was a fight, he settled down but was it from the milk or the energy spent trying not to drink?Enfamil, Similac, Good Start by Nestle, these formulas are all very good but what does Jack like?Mom's having a hard time in satisfying him and the constant feeding is draining her energy. We settle on the Good Start, purely as it tasted better to us than the other two formulas. We have a plan, breast feed first option, pump and bottle feed second option, Good Start third option.Jack's hungry again but a least there is a plan!!!!

Posted on: 8 September 2005 | 12:39 am

The Year of the Horse

People born in the Year of the Horse are popular. They are cheerful, skillful with money, and perceptive, although they sometimes talk too much. The are wise, talented, good with their hands, and sometimes have a weakness for members of the opposite sex. They are impatient and hot-blooded about everything except their daily work. They like entertainment and large crowds. They are very independent and rarely listen to advice. They are most compatible with Tigers, Dogs, and Sheep.www.c-c-c.orgWell! Look what I have been born into, that is, with the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck just for good measures. Once that was removed I tested my lungs and boy did they work.I'm a budding three and a half year old now and I will be treating you to my rollercoaster of a life in the forthcoming excerpts in The Musings of Jack so stay close and check in regularly.

Posted on: 6 September 2005 | 11:34 pm