Baby Steps

young feet are incredible. 
they are made of cartilage, not bone, which only develops as the child grows through their teens.
gives me serious questions about how to protect my son's feet, and suggests that maybe barefoot is best for babies and children too.

The human foot at birth is not a miniature version of an adult foot. In fact, it contains no bones at all and consists of a mass of cartilage, which, over a period of years, ossifies to become the 28 bones that exist in the adult human foot. This process is not complete until the late teens, so it is crucial that footwear - when worn - is well chosen.
"Most children's shoes ought to come with a government health warning," believes Byrne. "They are like awful little bricks - too stiff, too rigid, with no flexibility at the sole and too much heel raise. This is of particular concern with toddlers learning to walk, because it causes them to bounce and tip forward," she says.
Woodward agrees. "I have in my hand a Nike Air shoe for a three-year-old - quite an expensive item, I would guess. From the heel to the toe there is no 'bend' or 'give' in the sole. Completely rigid, this shoe will restrict movement of the forefoot to zero. Kids this age should be turning cartwheels, skipping, climbing trees, running around. A shoe like this would seriously restrict such playful physicality - make it less fun, less enjoyable."
Full article

barefoot update

it's two and a half months since my last barefoot post, and whilst it has been a busy time, i have done next to no running.
i have tried a few therapies, including massage and physiotherapy, but the biggest improvements have been from just resting my feet, combined with toe scrunching to help build up the strength in my arches.

so - day-today there is now no pain in my heels, and i can run across a road if i need to.
doesn't sound like much but it beats limping everywhere all the time.
and when i do run (across the road), i make sure to fore-foot strike and keep my feet loose and alive.

i have also been walking barefoot outside a little. being exposed to texture and temperature again feels great.
i hope to start running barefoot again in the new year.
and of course i have my son's feet to inspire me now, and i want to be a good example.

*Edit* moved quoted article to separate post.

Growth spurt

so, why the hell did noone mention growth spurts?!
we have just been through the second spurt so knew what to expect, but the first was a nightmare because we didn't know what was happening.
so what was..?
Seems every 10 - 12 days a newborn has a burst of growth. If you are breastfeeding, the first spurt results in a very hungry and upset baby who will take all the milk you have and still want more. Clearly at that point the crying gets worse and, after you have run through the possible cause again, you will realise that (s)he is still hungry.
This was the first time during the whole pregnancy and birth that I saw my wife show fear. She could not feed our baby. We had been told that the milk would be there, as much as was needed, but now it had run out. What were we doing wrong and how do we feed our increasingly unhappy baby..?
I nipped out for some formula and made some calls for advice. My questions were what is happening? and how much formula without ruining the chance of future breastfeeding?
Expert advice (amazing midwife homebirth team) reassured us that this was completely normal, and enough milk would flow tomorrow. All we had to do was wait and endure the tears, which would be more about communication than actual acute hunger.

So, all good in the end. As soon as we had this information the fear evaporated. But the fear could have been completely avoided if we had known this was coming. We did a good deal of preparation, but missed this. If it happens to you, take heart. It's expected, milk flow was better second time. ...and it will happen again, and again, and again, so you can get used to it ;~)

Photos of our son pt2. 2-3 weeks

a few more photos of Noah Bear

New Longbow!

what with becoming a dad and all, the arrival of my new handmade longbow has slipped backwards somewhat in the interest stakes.
however, i am coming up to breath a little now, and the new bow, which arrived the day after Noah, is wonderful.
handmade by Bickerstaffe Bows, it is made from a laminate of Hickory, Purpleheart, Lemonwood, and Greenheart woods, with horn nocks (end bits the string loops over).
i have given it some initial warming up, but have yet to shoot it. however, just stringing it makes the bow come alive - you can feel the power in the wood's tension.

can't wait for a free weekend.

anyone do baby sitting..?

i also ordered some arrows to go with it. nice bright fletching to help find them in the grass whilst i'm learning...

Photos of our son

A small slide show from the first 5 days...



(you can view fullscreen by:
moving your mouse over the images to reveal a toobar at the bottom.
click the square with 4 arrows on the right...)

I'm a dad!

our son Noah Bear was born at 1.52am on Monday, 2nd November.
he is wonderful, and i can't stop gazing at him.
his amazing mum birthed Noah at home, completely naturally, using only focussed pranayama and visualisation.
photos will follow...