Tuesday
We’ve taken another step into bona fide parent land, having woken up in the middle of the night this week to deal with a child who puked all over himself in bed. With as much as Jacob has spit up in his short little life, you’d think we wouldn’t be fazed by anything regurgitated from his little gullet. But this was real, thick, orange, vomit. We think Jacob picked up a stomach bug during his recent trip to Fort Yukon from one of the many little kiddies he hung out with while there. A day later, and I was joining him. This afternoon it hit me and proceeded to roll over me the rest of the evening. At least I had the good grace not to puke in bed.

Wednesday
I stayed home from school today. It was good to have a day at home in the middle of the week, even though all I did was sit and watch everyone performing well choreographed chaos all around me. As purely an observer, I got to see that Stephanie works really hard running things and is super active keeping up with Jacob, especially in the evening. From dinner to baths to PJ’s to story-time and bed to cleaning the dinner dished and putting away toys, it’s all quite a rush that finally winds up about 8:30. They are all non-stop motion.

Thursday
It’s thirty degrees below zero. We’re still locked in winter’s dark deep freeze. Sounds like a good time to grill! Tonight we were in the mood, so when I got home, Stephanie sent me outside to brush the snow off of the grill. Pork steaks grilled in arctic winter. Why not.  

I heard just today about an accident in Fort Yukon involving two of my former Fort Yukon high school students (current FYU students, formerly my students). The story made the front page of the Fairbanks News Miner, and you can read that story here.

Friday
It’s a little disconcerting having another man watch me so closely while I pee sitting down like a woman. Well,  it’s a not-quite-two-year-old-man. Stephanie thought it would be a good idea of I demonstrated for Jacob. He’s begun toilet training and she didn’t think he was getting the idea. I made her promise never to tell anyone, so I’m not sure why I’m writing it here. Anyway. I don’t know if it helped. We’re just starting, so… baby steps.

Jacob and I have been having a lot of fun lately. Tonight during bath time I had both boys in the tub. Jacob was playing with the detachable shower head and spraying water everywhere. Mostly on himself, but I couldn’t have gotten more wet if I’d been in there with them. Hearing my boy laugh for fifteen minutes straight is pure joy.

Now that both boys are in bed, and it’s Friday night, Stephanie and I are on the couch, each in front or our laptops. She’s watching downloaded episodes of Studio 60, and I’m writing and tweaking pictures. We both stop every now and then to share something we thought of or encountered this past week and compare notes.
Stephanie: “Did you hear that Anna Nicole died?”
Brian: “Yeah, I saw that.”
Stephanie: I know this is awful, but I’ll sure be glad not to see her in the news anymore.”