August 4th, 2006 by 
gowest
Do you know that when a 16 month old screams or cries into your ear while you carry him on your arm, it gives your eardrums some really good vibrations? I mean, I don’t know if it is really good, but I had the feeling it took a long time for the vibrations to stop. So, the volume level must have been pretty good. It almos felt like when I was 18 and went to a heavy metal concert for the very first time. After the concert it took about 3-4 hours for the high pitched noise to go away. Those were really good vibrations.
I wonder if those vibrations and the associated loss of hearing is one of the blessings people are referring to when they talk about kids? I mean - it can be a real blessing if your hearing ability goes down a little bit and you do not realize how loud that 16 month old is really screaming. I think kids are a blessing, I really do. I am just not sure if I appreciate every single piece that ‘comes with the package’ as much as other people do.
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July 31st, 2006 by gowest
I feel a little bit like Harrison Ford or Tom Hanks stranded on an island since my mother in law arrived 10 days ago. It’s like forever already that she is here and there is no chance of getting away from this island in the near future. There is almost no private moment in this house anymore. “Grandma” is everywhere. She is there when I come out of our bedroom to leave for work at 6.30 AM and she is there at 4.30 PM when I come home from work. And you probably guessed it - she is around until it is time to go to bed. The only moment of freedom I get is when I get up at 5.00 AM to go running and do my morning workout.
I feel sorry for Logan, too. As nice as it is for him to have Grandma here (and I really mean it), he cannot play for himself a moment. She has to interrupt him with comments or the attempts of having him to drink or to eat. The poor kid must get confused and must overreact at one point. One thing we noticed - he does not like to be near grandma when either Simone or me is around. Again I really mean it - I feel sorry for Grandma (mother in law). When she was here in April she broke her arm and did not get her quality time with Logan and now that she is back he is a few months older and shows different behavior.
What shall I say. Only 34 more days to go until my mother in law will go back to Germany. Does this qualify for any kind of medal?
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July 29th, 2006 by gowest
Nap time. So we thought when the afternoon approached and we wanted to put Logan down for his regular afternoon nap. No way. He did not wanted to sleep at all. We tried all our known tricks, but nothing worked. Nothing. If you have a baby yourself you know how stressful a baby can be with no sleep. They become fussy and are completely out of control depending on how long this situation lasts. Well, here it lasted until the evening was there and everybody was completely exhausted. We even had to put Logan into the truck and take him for a long drive to have him calm down. What a nightmare. And you here people say that kids are a blessing. Well, they are - when they eat and when they have enough sleep.
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July 26th, 2006 by gowest
Last September I bought a Treo 650 PDA/Smartphone and was very happy with it. Over time one thing bothered me though. I was paying for unlimited data transfer on Verizon Wireless network, but was limited by the Treo’s slow speeds (hardware limitation). Usually when I come home from work I let Logan play with my 2 cell phones. Yes, I do have 2 cell phones. 1) A personal phone for me and my own business and 2) one (Blackberry) from my dragging full-time job as a Windows System Administrator. Logan loves cell phones a lot. We even gave him an old one we were no longer using and he loves to answer all those “incoming calls”.
Anyway - a drooling baby mouth sucking and chewing on a cell phone is probably not the best treatment for a Treo 650 cell phone. I wonder when they finally make baby-proof cell phones for adults? Don’t they know that stressed parents enjoy moments of silence while baby is quietly playing with the toys provided?! ;) duh ….
The phone itself is still working, but the microphone quit working. So, I can make one-way phone calls - meaning you can talk to me, but no matter how much I yell at you, you cannot hear me. Fun, isn’t it? Well, I decided to bite the bullet and get me a new cell phone in the middle of my contract. I knew that I had to pay retail price and would not get any discounts, but getting a new high-speed Internet enabled phone was very tempting. So, after some quick research in the morning I decided to get a brand new Motorola Q (Moto Q) from Verizon Wireless.
During lunch I went to the closest store and did spend about $500 in phone and accessories. Crazy. I am just glad that my business is going good lately and that I am able to afford these kind of expenses when needed. So, here is my new toy 
The Moto Q - a really cool phone for me.
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