This is the third and final installment of our New Adventure Series capturing the thoughts, feelings, confusion, and chaos following the birth of each my children. (re: Next Adventure, Lila 2019; New New Adventure, Ciara 2021). Now Ciara’s a big sister with the addition of blessing #3, baby Chase, so the games have begun again on this Last Adventure (LA) into a new parenting normal . As my cousin Tim said, it sounds like a full house, Queens over Kings…
Get the full ‘Last Adventure’ Series here: charleskunken.com/season9
Last Adventure #1- Zen and the Art of Pressure Washing
Booted from Maxine’s
The pre-birth blog has been a tradition with both Lila (2019) and Cici (2021) but Chase Warner came eight days early and my strategic procrastination as of late is reaching impressive levels. So this one is retroactive, however I did capture some notes on my phone at the hospital (edited for syntax).
“This one snuck up. Again. Would have thought I learned by now.
It’s surreal there’s going to be a baby born today. My son! What do I still have to do around the house? A stack of Amazon boxes, swaddles, wipes, things to assemble…the dresser I thought should be painted yellow but then switched to blue still needs one more coat of paint (it only has 4).
I like how by the third time you get to embrace the moment without as much overwhelm or uncertainty. And now I’m two for three on not passing out in the delivery room. Hall of Fame numbers. It’s messed up how dad’s get to enjoy the birth of a child. I have no idea how I’m going to pay for three colleges, I need a vehicle with a third row as of yesterday, and we don’t have enough bedrooms but this is the most mentally prepared I’ve felt for a baby.”
The number three hit me on discharge day atop the parking garage roof when I spilled a kilo (a key) of Chex onto the ground while swapping the baby seat in from the trunk for one of the toddler chairs. Musical car seats. But I passed my first real test as Chase’s dad when I got us on the road in time to beat traffic (*wife may disagree*).
Lila and Cici both took to baby Chase in their own unique ways, Lila immediately and Cici after 12 hours of sizing up the situation. Then she started trying to climb into the bassinet yelling “Hi Chase!”
On day 1 at home we had to grab some ice after Chase’s first pediatrician visit so his first outing was officially the bodega, where he was a big hit.
What does a third child mean for finishing the book? Same as always - in the seams of time. Now baby Chase joins the publishing team. And I’ll need the extra help. I’m in a bit of a situation where the manuscript has been with my editor for 4 months now (I was expecting it back in 1.5). Instead of getting pushy I’ve been using the time to embrace the distance and work on the illustrations for the kids book which you’ll be seeing some on these posts. I’m also getting some artwork commissioned for the novel and a professional cover is in the works. We’re still plodding along (and at least we’re not plotting).
Let the games begin…
Happy Friday,
Charlie
Have some thoughts? Feel free to drop a comment or hit me up: charlie@charleskunken.com
Other Posts In The ‘Last adventure’ Series
Chaos ensued, and it was not my fault. Chase first fourth = an all-timer.