This post is a follow up to a previous blog post which you can read here: http://wp.me/p1jwkK-3O

Well, it happened!  Alex is the proud father of a new baby boy born July 11, 2013, at 11:57am as his teasing mother-in-law joked it most certainly would arrive, before lunch.  The young guy weighed in at 9 lbs. 9 oz. but not without controversy …  Laura had been up to see the doctors at the Thunder Bay hospital two weeks previous and they had tried to induce her for 8 hours without success.  Frustrated and tired, she vowed not to travel the 120 kilometer one way trip from Nipigon to Thunder Bay again until her child was ready.  Expectant Dad, Alex, fully concurred!  Alex Junior (or AJ for short) Oswald Gordon Nayanookeesic is now alive and taking in his new world having been born naturally and thankfully without complications.  One great grandfather and one grandfather were tremendously honoured by having this precious bundle of joy named after them!

Alex was there at the birth of his son and was as he coined the phrase “overwhelmed” by the process.  He wanted to video the event but as the intensity of the moment began this idea came to a rapid close.  Asked how he felt about the birth he said that it was “the happiest moment in my life.”  He also had a question- “How the heck was that baby able to come out of Laura’s body?”   At the moment of birth he was overcome and “cried like a baby!”

Laura’s winter snow plow operator position came to an end and she had enough time accumulated to qualify for and collect Canada employment insurance (EI) maternity leave.  Alex lined up a highway production job in the spring with his uncle Bobby working for Pioneer Construction near and just east of town and close to home.  It is a six day a week gig with Sundays off and four days off during a long weekend.  When AJ was born his dad took two weeks leave to be there for his new son, Laura, and the other two children.  Somewhat reluctantly he has returned to the job site as he loves to spend time with the baby.  Unfortunately, a probable trade layoff will probably come late summer or early fall.

Very excited about the little one and nervous at first, Alex has since found his stride and place.  He was blessed to be able to hold the baby right away.  He dotes over AJ, not scared in the least to hold him close.  He and Laura are very loving of each other and it shows as parents with their newborn.  She is able to breast feed and he supports her all the way sometimes to the point of instructing the other two children “to not bother their mother as she is feeding the baby.”

The day AJ came home, I was at the township’s outdoor swimming pool with the grandkids, and being from a small town where we know everyone’s vehicle, I noticed a familiar black 2005 Mazda 6 rounding the corner with him inside accompanied by Dad & Mom, and Karin, Laura’s mother.  I mentioned to granddaughter Angelina that her new brother had just rounded the corner and in a flash that little girl was peddling her children’s bike as fast as her two little legs could go to catch up with the vehicle and head for home.  I was witnessing a precious moment… Her seven year old brother was just as fast but trailed even me slightly as we all peddled our bikes to rendezvous with the newest member of the family.  It truly was a beautiful sight to see, Alex, with his new family, and with his first paternal son.  Laura indicated later that “She had never seen her kids bike so fast!”

Being a new dad isn’t easy, but Alex already has it figured out that if they don’t bottle feed AJ then he won’t have to mix formula.  He just has to give Laura a nudge when AJ cries for nourishment in the middle of the night.  As a form of aid, I supplied the new father with a pamphlet entitled “24-HR CRIBSIDE ASSISTANCE” the new baby manual for dads (figured I had better since I am a member of the Dad Central Steering Committee ha ha ha!)

Adjusting to the newest addition appears natural for Alex.  He puts AJ in the car seat and swings him around, watches intently as the baby is feeding, rocks him with his foot while watching TV, and carries him with ease (something which took ‘ol rigid me a long time to succeed at.)  Alex is a laid-back type of person and I am certain this sociable aspect will bode well for him as the future proceeds with all the joys and trials of having another individual to care for.

Oh yes, and by the way, he is trying to quit smoking.  When asked why replied “just feel like it, and for Laura to kiss him…”  He also wants to set an example for his children.  He is worried that they will take up smoking because he does even though they always are always reminding him that it’s bad for his health.  His replacement addiction, sun flower seeds…

Submitted by Gordon Mackenzie, Nipigon, ON – a very proud and grateful father-in-law and member of the Dad Central Steering Committee representing Northwestern Ontario