Cold January....

Still dadding-on with things and apart from a cold, the wee-dude is getting a long a treat. He's not sleeping well at the moment but if you had teeth growing through and a stinking cold, I think you'd also be struggling.
Past the 6-month mark and so I don't think there's much hope in being allowed to return him - not even sure where I put the receipt.

Christmas 2016 was a decent one, if a little crazy. We had builders in and so we only managed to get a tree 2-days before Xmas and then when we got down to Devon, we found that L's folks had only thrown a bit of tinsel onto a pot-plant and so the lacking of a tree did make things feel a little sad.
The car has always been jammed full of stuff and my sport kit but add in the boys stuff and the inevitable crap you have to travel back home with after the holidays and I'm amazed we managed it in one trip. Glad to say that the wee-dude did get some nice things but we weren't overwhelmed by plastic toys and the like (there was one particularly freaky soft toy but I can't say what happened to that).

It was great to hit Devon and home for a week but we were glad to return home. A little highlight was the Boxing Day wander along Exmouth beach and catching up with my old best friend Nick (he's the chauffeur in the Galaxy advert)  and meeting his fiance (Jasmine - link) for the first time. I think it's fair to say they now live a very different lifestyle to me and L but they are a cracking couple and if we're all ever in the same County again, we'll have to catch up again. Their mini-pack of dogs were also entertaining and I was amazed how my two beasts managed to get on with them so well.

Anyway, it's not 2017 (how the hell did that happen) and January is almost over. I haven't been surfing or wakeboarding yet this year but in part that's not my fault. It's been so cold so far in 2017 that the lakes have all be frozen and so neither cable parks of boats lakes can actually open.

Off to catch up with Ben and Sarah next month and I fear I'll return home with some more ink. Ben is  making moves to becoming a PT/FT tattoo artist and needs more skin to practise on.....we'll see how it goes and/or how many beers I have.

The training is a struggle. Still getting to the gym 2 -3 times a week but it's fecking hard work. Opted to stay on the sofa this evening with a baileys or two (a true man drink), rather than going to the gym - I'll get there tomorrow at some point.

That's a quick catch-up. I'm missing the longer days and sunshine. I'm not getting as much sleep as I once did and getting to the gym seems to be a bigger challenge but things are good.

Arnie and L meet one of F Christmas's reindeer.

The wee-dude is starting to move about.

A spot of coffee back home in Exeter.

Grandma and Arnie.

Tilly has a hair cut.

Beers by the river - Port Royal.

Smiles.

Another doggy haircut.

Christmas day.

Arnies first Christmas scram.

All smiles.

Festive walk.

A spot of festive Jenga.

Festive grandma again.

Whiskey carrying pyjamas.

3 months...

Well, I've been a dad for 3 months and both me and the wee-dude are still very much alive. Heading back to work after most of the summer off was a real hit. Think I'm keeping up with things but I am missing hanging around with my little family.

How's the dad-stuff going.....apart from a very small handful of restless nights sleep, the little-man has been a cracker. Lisa does by far the majority of the actual parenting (and obviously feeding) but the  bits I get involved with, I'm not that bad at. Bath-time seems to be the boys favourite and I do that without tears or drowning him. Nappy changing is all good and I'm even alright at switching the reusable ones. My weak spot has to be the simple changing of clothes. With so many poppers (and in some cases old skool buttons), it can be akin to a psych-ed challenge. Also, I'm very aware I have dad-strength and always a wee-bit worried about snapping one of the dude limbs - although I am told (frequently) that the wee-fella is pretty resilient. Outside of the day-to-day stuff, taking the wee-dude swimming is a favourite. Lisa takes him to his weekly swimming lesson but I do get to take him to the pool once a week or so. He's clearly not much of a swimmer at the moment but he loves being flung about, having the occasional underwater adventure but he seems to really enjoy the post swim shower with his dad.

Sadly I'm pretty sure the summer is now over! It's been a couple of weeks since I went wakeboarding and did have to slip on my 3:2 wetty. Still, it was sunny and beautifully flat, so I think I ended the summer season on a high.

Heading down to Cornwall in a few days, for a spot of adventure, wakeboarding and surfing. Hoping that on the way I'll be able to squeeze in a session with the Exewake crew....just so long as the weather allows (don't mind the cold but the wind would really screw things up).
I can't say where we're going as apart from the basic details, it's a secret from Lisa. It should be a good crack though and with a spot of sunshine we might even be able to get out on the kayaks.

That's about it for news and if you follow my Instagram, you've probably seen all the wee-dude pics and stuff. Still, here's a snapshot of life in the last few weeks.

Picked these up at the tattoo convention.

Bath-time with mummy.

I also got an accidental tattoo - I like to think it's a reminder of the treasure(s) I have in my family. Going to let Ben colour the leaves in.

Always a good (if drunken) night out with Ben,

Ben sucking up a spot of culture.

Yep, Ben also got inked.

Would love this deck.

The convention.

Daft time with the wee-dude.

That'll be Patrick the rabbit.

What a cracker!

Some fab little faces.

Shower-time with dad.

The boy loves a spot of speedboat time (I'm on the rope).

Family smile.

Feeling  a bit peckish. THink I'll munch down on the boy.

A beaut of a day for my last session at the lake.

Watching the WSL with the wee-dude on a Saturday morning.

Bath time.

Knee time.

Car time.

Morning time.

Bed time.

Dadlife...

Wow, I can't believe I've been a dad now for just over 6 weeks and to that degree, that I have a 6 week old boy. He's called Arnie Granville or 'the boy' and is doing great. Lisa had a difficult time of it and was in and out of hospital for a week or so afterwards but like the boy, she's doing brilliantly now.

The birth....Lisa was in labour for 3 days. Induced Saturday morning and eventually taken for an emergency C-section on the Monday afternoon. I've said this to her and anyone else that asks but the strength of mind and body that Lisa showed through out the entire thing was just amazing. I've done Olympic distance triathlons, x-country races and even the odd ultra-marathon but what Lisa did over that particular weekend was inspiring and made my physical challenges look insignificant in comparison.

The boy....well look for yourself. Born on Monday 18th July 2016, he's an absolute beaut.

Anyway, I'll keep this update dad/Arnie related and short. Life is good; I'm back at work sadly and Lisa is doing brilliantly. Apart from being an actual dad, nothing really seems to have changed. The boy is sleeping and feeding well. He has demoted me to a possibly 3rd or 4 position in the household (if you include the dogs) but I think I'm ok with that. I've still been wakeboarding all summer and the boy has even been on a couple of different speedboats already and seemed to find the entire thing very relaxing - fell asleep each time (even in semi-open water). If I'm honest, my training has been hit but that is in part due to the injury I gained during my July ultra-marathon, so I can't really blame Arnie.

All-in-all, keep it to yourself but I think I'm loving being a dad and looking forward to the adventures the boy will bring.