The Cutter Rambles

One Year of the Cutlet

July 7, 2011 at 1:34 pm | Posted in The Cutlet, Trips and Events | Leave a comment
Tags: Baltimore Aquarium

I am happy to announce this past Sunday marked the Cutlet’s first birthday!

Naturally, Mrs. Cutter and I wanted to make sure the anniversary of her birth was extra special, so we had a big celebration over the weekend.

We had planned on beginning the weekend-long celebration the way any good parents would: By spending some time away from our child.  My parents were going to come over and watch the Cutlet on Friday night while we went out with some friends.  But somehow, she sensed our plan and promptly put a stop to it.

She woke up crying several times on Thursday night which is atypical for her.  On Friday morning, it was clear that she was feeling a little sick, and she didn’t seem to improve too much as the day went on.  She also developed a rash, but we think that was just an adverse reaction to applying too much sunblock, since it went away after her bath.   Regardless, we figured that it wouldn’t be good for either her or my parents to leave her alone with them.

Her sleep was much more peaceful on Friday night, and she seemed to be doing much better when she woke on Saturday.  We were grateful for that since we had a big day ahead of us.

Along with two sets of grandparents, we took a trip up to Baltimore to see the National Aquarium.  The Cutlet loves watching our fish at home, and she enjoyed going to the lackluster aquarium in DC, so we figured she would really enjoy the much larger and nicer aquarium in Baltimore. 

We soon discovered one major problem: Strollers were not permitted inside the aquarium.  We later realized that with so many people there, it would have been near impossible to move if there were strollers around, but we were still annoyed.  Fortunately, among the six of us, we were able to alternate carrying her without anyone growing too tired.

Despite the large crowd, the Cutlet thoroughly enjoyed the aquarium.  She seemed almost entranced by all the fish, and we were able to let her walk alongside some of the tanks and try to follow the fish as they swam.  She also really seemed to enjoy looking at the various pictures of fish throughout the building, so we probably could have just given her a book of fish pictures and gotten the same effect for a lot less money.

Sunday afternoon was her actual birthday party.  We had rented our condo association’s clubhouse, and planned to wake up early on Sunday morning to make final preparations.

Unfortunately, nature seemed to have other ideas.  We were woken up by a massive thunderstorm in the middle of the night.  Instantly, I became concerned that we would lose our power.  As longtime readers of the blog (as well as any Pepco customers in Montgomery County) surely know, this is a major concern for us.

I couldn’t get back to sleep since I was sure that the power was going to go out at any second.  Finally, after some time, it seemed as if the storm had passed, so I was able to relax.  Just as I was drifting back to sleep, the inevitable happened. 

I was furious.  Based on Pepco’s recent track record, I figured that we’d be in the dark for at least a day.  This was going to put a huge damper on the party as we’d be stuck in the dark and without air conditioning.

To my surprise, at around 8 AM, I was woken by the sounds of our electrical devices coming back on.  Pepco had somehow managed to get us back in a reasonable amount of time!  It was a birthday miracle!

Unfortunately, we had slept later than we intended, and we’d have to get everything done in even less time than originally anticipated.

We stopped at Party City to buy a few items and to get balloons inflated.  We figured on this being a relatively quick stop.  We were wrong.

You might think that July 3rd would be a busy day at a party store, with everyone having holiday BBQs and other parties.  You also might think that the store would prepare for this and have enough employees on hand to handle the crowd.  

Instead, there were only two employees in the store, and neither one seemed to be moving especially fast considering the long lines that had formed.  Finally, after about 45 minutes in the store we were on our way.

We were running a little late, but we managed to get everything in place just in time.  We went with a music theme, complete with music note centerpieces and inflatable guitars.

The guests soon filed in, and frivolity began.  We had a good mix of friends with babies and friends without babies, so that neither group felt too awkward or out of place.  Or at least I hope they didn’t. 

There was only one thing missing: The Cutlet.

She had gone down for her morning nap , and we didn’t want to wake her prematurely.  The Cutlet doesn’t always do so well when a lot of people are in her face, so we figured we’d let her get all the sleep she needed.  We figured that she would want to make a fashionably late entrance anyway.

Finally, Grandma roused her, put her in her special birthday dress and brought her over.  She wasn’t quite sure what to make of so many people looking and waving at her, but she quickly ignored everyone and played with some toys.

After a while, we sat her in her booster seat so that everyone could sing happy birthday to her.  After some trial and error, I managed to light the birthday candles, and then with a little help from her parents, the Cutlet blew them out.  We then placed a cupcake in front of her which she happily devoured. 

The party was a success, and the Cutlet had a grand old time.  When she’s older and looks back at the pictures, I’m sure she’ll feel honored at how many friends she had.

Later that day, at 6:15 (her actual birth time) we sang happy birthday to her again, and gave her some presents to play with. 

And finally, after a busy day, her parents celebrated the big day by leaving her with Grandma and going out to dinner without her!

So now that I’ve made it through an entire year of parenthood,I figured I’d share some more lessons I’ve learned along the way.

Two parents are better than one

I don’t know how single parents manage raising a child.  Seriously, if I had to do this by myself, I think I might have given up by now.  It is so nice to have someone else to share in the child rearing duties, especially on those days when the Cutlet is being difficult or fussy.

Another benefit: It has allowed us to participate in activities that don’t involve child rearing, leading to…

Keep a life outside of the baby

While raising a child is going to take up a large part of your time, I think it is important to also try to maintain some sort of personal identity aside from just being a parent.

During the week, I will often go to the gym or play softball after work, and Mrs. Cutter will go to yoga.  Meanwhile, the other parent stays home and tends to the Cutlet.  While these may seem like minor things, it’s nice to be able to get out and do things that we enjoy.

We’ve also managed to maintain a semblance of a social life.  We’ve maintained contact with many of our old friends, and even made some new ones thanks to Mrs. Cutter’s mother’s group.

Of course, most of our social activities have changed.  Instead of Booze Bus trips, we’re more likely to spend our weekends at a first birthday party.

On those times that we are invited to social events past the Cutlet’s birthday, we’ve been able to alternate who gets to go out and who gets to tend to the Cutlet.  If we’re feeling especially adventurous, we’ll get a babysitter and go out together.

Having babysitting relatives nearby is a plus

I get a bit envious when I see parents out together and they say, “Grandma came over to babysit.”  Sadly, neither Mrs. Cutter nor I’s parents live close to us, so they can’t simply drop on by to watch the Cutlet.

We have taken advantage of the free babysitting when they’ve been in town, but we just wish it could happen more often.

Sex is more difficult with a child around

It’s quite a deflating feeling being interrupted by the cries of your child. 

Naps are the greatest thing ever

On days when the Cutlet does not go to day care, we can usually measure how good a day was by how well she napped.  If she naps for a long period of time, it is almost always a good day for us.  She’s usually in a better mood, and we’ll have time to take care of some chores or to simply relax for a bit.

On those days when she doesn’t nap well…those are the nights when Mrs. Cutter often has to open up the wine bottle.

Time will drag, and time will fly

With a baby in the house, days might seem to drag on forever, and yet you never quite have enough time to get everything done. 

And I certainly can’t believe she’s been with us for a full year.  But what a year it has been!