What’s the big deal you say? Anybody can sleep!

Ah, but to catch a Power Nap during the day is an art! Especially if you have young kids as this At Home Dad does who rebel against that three-letter word NAP.
The Power Nap
The power nap can give you more energy, make you more alert and give you better recall. Research also finds that power napping can cut back on the carb cravings, lower blood pressure and drop risk of heart disease.

The best time for power napping is between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. when the body causes hormone changes. The best length is between 10 and 20 minutes.
**TIP: Drink a little coffee or other caffeine such as a Monster Type drink before napping; it can help wake you up 20 minutes later when it is processed by the body and kicks in.
**TIP: Quiet music that you are familiar with can also help instead of dead silence.
Research shows that you can make yourself more alert, reduce stress and improve cognitive functioning with a nap. Mid-day sleep, or a “power nap”, means more patience, less stress, increased learning, better health, better reaction time, more efficiency and many athletes find a daytime nap further increases their body’s ability to build muscle.
My Muscle Nap
However, this period may not work well for you so you have to make do when the timing presents itself. For this At Home Dad, it happens after my morning workout and my son is either in his four day a week Kid’s Club or structured and supervised playgroup during the ladies Pilates class at our clubhouse, and that would be before 11 in the AM. I know what you are thinking, a nap before lunch? It’ll never happen because I am just not tired.

The key for me is to work out and get some cardio along with a BowFlex session then settle down and take what is called a Muscle Nap. A muscle nap is up to 60 minutes long and can be useful after exercise; this can refresh the mind and body after heavy exertion. This hour or so of working out and napping truly frees my mind and body and refreshes me for what my son will bring on in the afternoons, making me a better parent.

The Worst nap I ever took is the one I never got to take!

This post was published to MileHiDad- Dad's Daily Poop... at 7:44:49 AM 5/28/2008
Tick Tock Baby

Time just slipped away yesterday in the land of At Home Dad, upgrading to Joomla.
My ambitious plans yesterday was derailed severely and I will continue this morning when I get time after you know who visits clubhouse preschool for three hours starting at 9:30. He was up at 6:30, dressed and eaten and is asking every two minutes, “Is it time to go yet?”
I am not entirely sure what happened, maybe I was detoured when my installation did not upload correctly and had to FTP another hour, and during that time, I got my morning Blog ritual reading in. Then it happened, preschool was over and we had to do the playground on a chilly Tuesday followed by our walk home. I had to deal with AAA coming to jumpstart my truck because somehow, sometime Monday an interior light that I never use was left on. I wonder how that happened, might it have been some five YO mystery fingers helping me out? Don’t know, but I had to leave my truck in the driveway running while I loaded our bikes into the van for Sunday’s Tour de Fort bike ride. My truck hardly ever gets driven anymore because it costs a small fortune to fill the thing, let alone driven at night.
Thanks GW for your true caring about of the American economy. I feel a Rant about to happen!
All this At Home Dad knows, is that when our former president was serviced and got Lewinsky’ed; gas was cheap, America was not at war, America was respected in the world and the Dollar was worth something. Most of all Americans were happy!

Therefore, that leads me to ask, can our former First Lady, Hillary really lead America to better times? She could not even lead our, at that time President to better times and forcing him to outsource! GW, may not have cheated on his wife but what about the people that got him elected into office? Were their jobs outsourced in the subsequent years?
This later topic and sub topic could be a whole posting or five in itself and I will not expound anymore than I have.
OK, I’m done ranting now.

-Word

Good thing it is warm today! The pool opens this morning and amazingly enough my son slept in till eight. Not at 7:50 or 8:05, but 8 on the nose, this kid is like clockwork.
I was woken up by a “dad, I need my swimsuit, will you help me?” I rolled over amazed I got to sleep in so late, and said ya in a minute I just woke up too.

Too late, he had his best suit and CU Buffalo’s Jersey picked out for the day and took them downstairs as I opened the garage door for him and told him to stay out of the street and he agrees to what I just said and let me grab a 5-minute shower. No the good for me part…
I grabbed by Target branded camouflage swimsuit that I got for Cancun three months ago that fit, but snug. I pulled it on laced it up and realized it is baggy as in too big! Sweet! Anyway enough about me this morning…
I went down to check on him in the garage and he was marching up and down the sidewalk whipping his green float noodle around saying I want to take this when the pool opens, is it time yet? I told him 90 minutes and I get the OK Dad da, OK. Since my morning ritual involves a Java blast -done, I checked my mail and typed this quick update –now done, and guess what I have been asked three times since I started keying “is it time yet?” I cannot wait till we master that time thing, hopefully next!
Stay tuned over the summer for swim lesson video and photos, splashing and general pool craziness. Oh Boy…

It is nice for this At Home Dad to be wanted in one breath from my 5 year old son; then the next breath
“I hate you!” So where do this At Home Dad stand? My son has a “love-hate” relationship with me depending on his current mood.

If things are going his way and life is good I am never called names. When these times are happening, I am called Dad da, not dada like a baby verbalizes, but a Dad da, two explicitly distinct words said in rapid series and said only when we are harmonizing in life.

If things are NOT going his way and life is NOT going in his favor, I am called names. When these times are happening, I am called a Poopy Head or am told, “I hate you“.

Unfortunately in our 5 year relationship we have gone from mostly good days, I yearn for, to me being told he hates me more days than not, not because I am trying to be mean, but I have to keep an adult outlook on what’s going on and keep us safe. I try to talk to him and be his friend but when it is eight o’clock at night and he wants to go outside and play with the older kids on the block, and I say no, I am instantly the household villain. Trying to explain to a five YO that I am his biggest advocate and supporter is like trying to explain the concept of time to someone who cannot tell time, where in time and age he will eventually understand what I am saying. I would love to let him go out and play more, but I have to be responsible about his best interests, which turn into my best interests.

I guess I should just be happy he no longer says, “You wrecked my life” when he does not get his way followed with the “I hate you” jargon. Those really made me feel valued.

So what are these days, just the start to a vicious series of love-hate cycles until he is twenty-five or so? It will only get more complex with time, first with girls, then with vehicles and girls, followed with vehicles booze and girls; I can only imagine what it’s going to be like, then times it by 10. Then by the time, he is 25 it will all stop because he is finally grown up and may have kids of his own, or so I hope.

To put it in perspective these lyrics sum it all up. Go to my Crea8Buzz profile and listen to the song “Don’t Blink” in the player at the bottom to get the true meaning, sentiment and power of this Kenny Chesney song.
Just like that you’re six years old and you take a nap and you…
Wake up and you’re twenty-five and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife…
Don’t blink…
You just might miss your babies growing up…

Turning into moms and dads next thing you know your “better half”…
Of fifty years is there in bed and you’re praying God takes you instead…
Trust me friend a hundred years goes faster than you think…
So don’t blink

I had better not blink or I might miss something even though there are times where I think I will never pine for these days!

I have now reached my Ultimate Fighting Weight I have not been at since my late 20’s! I weighed in this morning at 162.5 pounds. My BMI is 25.

I ate a Smart One’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream Sunday with a half cup of Dannon Light and Fit Vanilla Yogurt on top every night in my journey to slimness that started 01/01/08.
If I can do it, so can you with Weight Watchers!