Trials and Tribulations...

Well, after much soul searching and discussion, we decided to take the next steps toward responsible parenthood.

We bought a booster seat.

Caleb Zakai has hated his highchair for a good couple of months now, so we’ve been letting him sit in a “big people” chair ~ sometimes on a phone book, sometimes not, depending on his preference. The problem we were running into was that he had the freedom to hop up and down from the table as his little heart desired.

And that heart desired many, MANY ups and downs for each and every meal.

So in an effort to bring our mealtimes some peace, I bought a booster that has a seat belt. Not only does he get strapped into it, but it straps to the chair, so even if he rocks and bucks, that sucker isn’t going anywhere. It’s going to take a while to get him completely used to it, since he got used to freedom, but I have high hopes for more controlled mealtimes.

The hilarity is this: the DAY I bought the booster, we were out to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants. We weren’t able to keep him in that booster chair, and he hammered his tiny little forehead on the table so hard that it rattled every dish on the surface, scaring every adult in the place. I grabbed him and administered the usual medicinal smooches, not knowing exactly where he was hit.

As I rocked him and tried to stop his cries, I happened to pull him back to give more kisses. I gasped – not kidding. In between his eyes was already turning purple and swelling to the kind of dimensions usually only seen in cheesy sci-fi shows. I was so shocked that I didn’t know what to do. So Jonathan kicked into Super-Dad mode. He hauled Caleb across his lap, grabbed some ice with napkins, and kept it firmly pressed against the lump. And I saw my son, who fights any kind of ministrations to his face, succumb to the authority that was his father.

We ended up getting our food to go, because Jonathan didn’t want to deal with eating there when Caleb was in such a wretched mood. (We had gone to the zoo that afternoon, a first. Generally we go first thing in the morning when it’s cool, and then he has naptime to rest. But it was supposed to be cool that afternoon ~ of course, only before and after our trip. Grr.) It turns out that Jonathan was totally freaked out, even though he looked calm as all get out. I still can’t believe that he was having a hard time, because he was so awesome under pressure! So I think Caleb and I are going to make him a t-shirt. I don’t know.

Anyway, please see how Jonathan channeled his frustration. Kind of creepy, but not as creepy as Caleb looked the next morning with his ginormous unicorn bump on his head!

 Terra replied...

Sorry I couldn't help but laugh! Too funny especially Jon's embellishing of it! You know with boys you just have to get used to the bumps. Ok, maybe not get used to...but at some point I think they just become a part of life.