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It's down to the nitty-gritty. Down to the day-to-day stuff. Down to Daddy Day Care.
Yes, the taking of long service leave and doing the move north set in motion images of a chilled out and relaxed time full of beaches, beers and books.
But that was never reality. For the deal also meant having to look after the son full-time as the wife undertook some part-time employment duties to supplement our meagre income.
And today was the day it all came crashing back to earth. Crashing is a bit harsh I guess. But you know what I mean.
And definitely more so for the wife than me as she started a new job not even a week after we permanently arrived up here on the Sunshine Coast. Yep, it surely was a dose of reality for her after 5-6 great days that felt more like a holiday than current living arrangements.
So off to work she went this morning for her first day leaving the son and I staring at each other wondering what we were going to do. The son’s first preference was for the little local pool we’ve discovered at Eumundi so that sounded as good an option as any.
I rounded up all the necessities for a pool trip and bundled the son into the car quickly and efficiently. Once I turned the key, I did do a look back at him in his car seat and thought the outfit would probably cause some derision from the wife. “Oh well, she’s not here is she” I said to him and off we went.
The session in the pool was a masterstroke (top work son) as we swam, jumped, kicked and ‘bubbled’ for ages, broken by the occasional trip to the play equipment and a treat at the kiosk. The wrinkles were starting to set in though so I decided it was time to call time and off to the changerooms we went.
The son sat peacefully on the bench (a bit out of character) while I quickly changed before I laid him down to take off his swimmer nappy and put on a proper one. "Ok, now where did I put that nappy?" Rummaging through my bag came to nothing so it was Mistake No. 1 for my time as Daddy Day Care. “All right son, maybe we’ll just put your swimmer nappy back on then”.
Thing was, I’d promised him a quick session at the park after the swim to kill a bit more time. So now it was going to be a game of Russian Roulette as I keenly watched every one of his movements for any sign of him doing a ‘yuck’. The swimmer nappies are not built for that sort of thing so it could be ‘poonami’ central if that’s how it was going to go down.
Alas, my concerns were not realised and the son played happily amongst all the other kids. I did stand out a bit though being surrounded by at least two mothers groups using the park as well and 3-4 others. I was definitely ‘eyed off’ at first until it was realised I had a child at the park myself. I know I look dodgy at the best of times but quite sad really. A future blog post in that for sure.
Anyway, it was then back to the house for some lunch and the son’s day sleep. The son didn’t baulk at my vegemite sandwiches but I did think I’ll need to expand my repertoire before he gets tired of them. Pretty sure there’s some kids menu books around here somewhere.
It was no rest for the wicked though as the son slept as it was actions stations on the cleaning/tidying front. There was no way I could allow the wife any reason for a comment when she got home so a busy daddy I was.
The afternoon then continued with a trip into Noosa itself for a walk and some more park time. The son took along his lawnmower and was happy ‘mowing’ Noosa Wood and the streets around Witta Circle for an hour or so except for the occasional kick-of-a-ball and going-down-the-slide. He didn’t have a safety vest on but he did do a grand job. Much better than most council workers anyway.
Day One of Daddy Day Care then came to an end when we picked the wife up on our way home and headed to the shops for some groceries. Coaxing the son back into the car for the trip was tough but my Jedi mind tricks worked a treat so another victory was mine.
All up, a pretty good day but with some lessons learnt as well. Organisation will be the key that's for sure and a keen imagination in thinking up more and more things for the son and I to do. Suggestions in that regard will therefore be greatly appreciated.
On that note folks, EDM and Son will sign off. Til next time then,
EDM.
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