A shock to the system

It’s fair to say that both Melissa and I have found dealing with a newborn a bit of a shock to the system.

Our first two weeks with James have, on the whole, been pretty good and we’ve even managed to get a decent amount of sleep. But there was so much I’d forgotten about caring for such a young child.

For a start, I found holding James nerve-wracking. I’m used to picking up a robust three-year-old, so handling a baby, albeit a relatively large one – he was 8lb 11oz when born – came as a real shock.

There were other, more messy, elements that I had also forgotten, chiefly that little boys like to go to the toilet when their nappies are removed.

This proved costly at the hospital when I ended up on the wrong end of a soaking. Still, Melissa also got caught out in similar fashion which made me a feel a bit better.

However, a few days later I got covered when James decided to projectile poop while I was changing his nappy.

Harry, who was helping out with the changing, gagged when he realised what had happened, which had me in stitches.

Speaking of Harry, he’s adjusting to life as a big brother pretty well, although he still doesn’t like it when James cries.

We’ve also had a couple of moments though when things have got too much for Harry.
When he came into our room the other morning he told me he that he’d decided he didn’t want to be a big brother.

“Can we take James back daddy?” he asked. “I don’t want him here any more.”