Saturday, April 28, 2012

Dad's A-Z: E is for Energy Level

Off the Grid

I have this distinct memory from when Lukas was just an infant.  He was maybe 5 or 6 months old at the time and was lying on his back on his changing table. He was in a very happy mood.  This was probably because he had just pooped,  peed, or more likely had a serving of warm milk from Mom's vending machine.

Yes, that picture of him in and of itself would have been a memory to treasure.  But honestly, I must have seen him on his back a million times on that changing table. Often through blurry eyes.  No, this time was different.  As he lay there this particular time, Lukas was swinging his arms and kicking his feet very animatedly.  And very quickly too.

VERY quickly.  Think Hummingbird.  I was surprised we could even still see his hands and legs they were moving that fast.

It was at that point that I looked over at Mrs. LIAYF with what I'm sure was a look of astonishment on my face, and said "You know....we are going to have to keep up with that soon enough!"

We both laughed.

Fast forward 4 years.  Lukas is now running circles around his mother and I.  Literally.  We were out for a nice walk last weekend and Lukas was running around us as we walked.  He was also spinning in circles with his arms out to his side as he was running circles around us.  It was definitely not an atypical scene around here. If we could only find a way to harness this goldmine of power we'd be rich.  Rich I tell you.

And even if we didn't become rich, at least we could hook him back up to the grid and sell back the extra power. We could certainly use a few extra Washington's each month to help foot the water bill around here. Or the food bill.  Or the Lego bill.

That he is running circles around us is not surprising really.  After all,  Mrs. LIAYF and I are both looking at our 30's in our rear view mirror now.  We are not as energetic as we used to be for sure, but this kid is certainly full of it.  Yes, I mean energy.  Oh, and sweetness too, he's full of that.  He is an awesome kid and we extremely lucky to have him in our lives. But he IS hard to keep up with.

Not too long ago Mrs. LIAYF even made comment.  "Where does he get all that energy?"

Even though I knew it was a rhetorical question, I think I responded with an "Are you kidding me???"  Then a "He just slept for 12 hours!"  followed up with a parting "And he will be taking another nap soon  enough."  All this with a smile on my face.

I think I averaged about 5-6 hours a night this past week.   So yeah, maybe it's not age at all.  Maybe I just need to get to bed earlier.  Catch a few more Z's.  Then surely I will be able to keep up with Lukas, right?

Yeah, I didn't think so.

But surely it may close the gap, or at least slow it's expansion somewhat.  One can only hope.

What about you readers?  Do your kids run circles around you too?

6 comments:

SaskaDad said...

My kids do run circles around me and its mostly my fault because I've let myself getting pretty fat and lazy over since they came along.

This is a pretty cool challenge you've set for yourself. Good luck getting all the way to Z.

James (SeattleDad) said...

@Saskadad - Thanks James. Seriously, I have gone weeks without many ideas of what to write about, then I start this and I could write several in a day if I wanted to.

Diplo_Daddy said...

I too, often ask myself the same question. Christopher is soooooooo full of energy. He wakes up in the morning and is ready to run from here to Baghdad and back—twice! While in Germany over the Easter break, he literally exhausted my father in-law to the point of him having to take a fifteen minute power nap just to keep up with him throughout the day.

Jack said...

a serving of warm milk from Mom's vending machine.

That almost made me spit out my coffee. Hah, love that line.

I always notice the difference in energy when I get more sleep. Our kids have this advantage called age and lack of responsibility that helps keeps theirs higher too.

James (SeattleDad) said...

@Diplo Daddy - I often fall into bed and am asleep before I hit the pillow. Old? or exhausted? Probably both, haha.

@Jack - Yeah, sleep is key. I keep telling myself - Must get more sleep.

Clint said...

My lil AquaGirl is going to be 2 on Monday and yes she is like her dad. Meaning she has unlimited amount of energy.

Yes even she does literally run circles are myself and the mama parental unit. She runs and runs around us until her lil heart in content.

You are doing a great job on your take on A-Z.