Wordless Wednesday: Her first ice cream cone

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Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

I just love watching Baby B do things in imitation of us, and it always leaves me a bit in awe when I see her mimicking something she saw us do. Of course it started out long ago with making silly faces at each other, but it’s progressed to more advanced things now. My two favorite ones come during bathtime.

We have this shampoo rinse cup, which has a flexible silicon edge that goes against the forehead to keep water and shampoo out of the eyes. After we’re done washing Baby B, we run the water and use the cup to rinse her, then we keep the water running and let her play with the cup. For the last several baths, she’s filled the cup with water and has put the soft edge to her own forehead and tried to tip it back so the water spills over her head, just like we do with her. (She’s often unsuccessful because the water makes the cup heavy and hard for her to control, but we often give a little help without her knowing it by nudging it upward when she makes the motion.)

During last night’s bath, she took the cup, filled it with water as usual, and brought it over to The Husband (who was in the bath with her) and poured it over his body. She did this several times, filling the cup carefully each time, then rinsing him off…again, just as we do to her each bath.

It’s times like these that really make me aware of just how much she’s learning on an everyday basis just by observing what goes on around her. I think sometimes we as parents get caught up in (and sometimes overwhelmed by) all the things we need to teach our children, but it is nice to see proof of just how much they pick up on their own without our direct instruction. Their capacity and eagerness for learning really is amazing.

Monday roundup (yee-HAW!)

*Baby B loves to turn off the lights when we leave a room. If we forget to let her do it, sometimes she’ll whine until we turn the light back on so that she can turn it off.

*Baby B’s current words (with recognition of what she’s saying) include: ma-ma/mom-mom (mom), da-da (dad), dog-doh (dog), ba (ball), cat, and nana (banana). I know there are a couple I’m forgetting, but I’ll add them later if I remember.

*We’re working on making sure Baby B understands our single-action commands, especially “come here.” With her really enjoying walking, she likes to just take off (usually in the opposite direction of us!), so we’re trying to make sure she knows what we mean when we tell her to come to us. Sometimes I’m convinced she knows, other times I’m not so sure. I think a lot of it is that she understands, but then chooses to ignore it. I suspect that’s not the end of that whole game.

*Baby B loves to climb steep hills, whether it’s the grassy incline in our backyard, or one of the many super-steep driveways in our neighborhood. She can usually navigate down them just fine, but seems to prefer going up.

*Baby B usually gets a bath on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, then a fun bath (no washing) on Sundays. However, since daycare puts sunscreen on her (including on her head since she doesn’t have much hair…and what she does have is thin and fine), we have to get that out each night, so The Husband has been taking a shower with her when we get home. I can’t see us doing that permanently in lieu of baths because she loves her baths so much, but it’s been a good solution when we do need to get the sunscreen out each day. She loves the water coming down, and she giggles when The Husband throws water in his face.

*Baby B can now get on her rocking horse all by herself, and she can get off it by herself, too.

*We went out this weekend to buy Baby B some spring/summer clothes, as she had none in her current size…everything that fits her is long-sleeved winter stuff. We went ahead and bought most things in 12 month size, which should last her throughout most of the spring and summer. (Believe it or not, she’s still mostly in 6-9 month or 6-12 month clothes, though she did have a few 12 month items.)

*This morning, The Husband reported that one of the daycare teachers put on a some kind of “fun time” CD, and three of the girls (including ours) came running over and started dancing by the CD player. Like, waving arms and shrieking. The other two girls lost interest after a minute, but Baby B continued dancing for the entire song, making herself dizzy and falling down twice. At the end of the song, she clapped eagerly.

*Baby B can stand in one spot and turn herself in a circle.

*I’m doing pretty well with the post-weaning time. There are times I do miss it, but most days I actually don’t ever think about it…and it almost seems weird that I would’ve possibly continued. So, it was definitely the right time to do it. I’m glad to have my body back again.

*Baby B has perfected her high-pitched scream. She does not do this when she’s angry or upset or frustrated. She does not do this when she’s happy. She does it at completely random times, just whenever she feels like testing it out. It’s kind of funny, though thankfully she hasn’t done this in public. Yet.

*When we ask, Baby B can point out where her belly button, nose, and ears are. We’re working on the other parts of the body, too, but so far she’s not real consistent with those.

*She’s very drawn to lions, and whenever she sees one or when we say, ”What does a lion say?” she’s quick to break out her roar: “RAWWWR!”

*As we move forward in time, I am so, so, so thankful that I’ve kept such detailed records in this blog. It’s sad just how many things I’m forgetting about Baby B’s early days. 

A horse is a horse, of course, of course

I went to the movies last night for the first time since Baby B was just a couple weeks old. A documentary of local interest was playing at our independent theater, so I went to see it by myself after Baby B went to bed. The film was called The First Saturday in May, and it followed six trainers as they tried to make their way to the 2006 Kentucky Derby. I was definitely drawn in from the beginning (though that’s not surprising for someone born and raised in Kentucky; I’ve never missed watching a Kentucky Derby ever in my life), though the film took an expected sad turn at the end. This was the year that Barbaro won the Derby, and he quickly became a tragic hero after he suffered a life-threatening injury to his leg in the Preakness Stakes two weeks after his Derby win. Even though I’ve very familiar with the ups and downs of Barbaro’s story, I wasn’t prepared for the unresolved emotions I had regarding Barbaro’s death.

I’ve felt a bit of a connection with Barbaro for a while now, though I’ve never really told anybody. See, if you do the math, Baby B was conceived the weekend of the Preakness Stakes when Barbaro suffered the injury that would eventually trigger the end of his life. I still remember just bawling the whole race after he broke his leg. Barbaro received top-notch veterinary care and began to make a great recovery, but then suffered a setback two months later when he developed laminitis, a complication that often is fatal to horses. Despite a grim prognosis, he continued to be treated and managed to recover enough that he could graze outside again (at the veterinary hospital) and they were talking about sending him home soon.

On the day before Baby B was born, I remember one of our writers saying he had talked to Barbaro’s owners and that things did not look good. I kind of figured that with yet another setback, his time was limited. Two days after Baby B was born, Barbaro was euthanized because he was suffering and his injuries were beyond repair. I will always remember hearing the news. We were hanging out in the hospital room watching the noon news, waiting to be discharged home, when they broke in with this update right at the end of the broadcast. This horse put up a great, noble fight during the nine months after his injury, though sadly succumbed in the end. It just struck me strongly to know that Baby B came to exist when Barbaro was injured, and she was born just two days before he died.

If we can show Baby B even half the care, love, affection, and attention that Barbaro received in his final months, then Baby B will be one lucky child.

Mom rules, part 2

Just so you don’t think from the last post that I’m one to abide by all the parenting “rules” out there, here’s a list of a few things we chose to do despite most expert advice advising against it. Please do not call Child Protective Services.

*She slept in her swing for the first 8 weeks. I think she felt the most secure and cozy there, plus it was a good solution with her reflux. We were very fortunate that she transitioned just fine to her crib.

*She has slept on her tummy since she was 6 months old. Most experts recommend back sleeping for the first year, and we were good about putting her down on her back for the first six months. Around that time, she showed a definite preference for tummy sleeping. At first, we would go in and flip her over to her back when we’d notice her doing this, but I think we not only gave that up within a month but also started putting her down to sleep on her belly.

*I sometimes let her play with items that she probably shouldn’t play with. I’d like to add the disclaimer that it’s ALWAYS with my constant supervision. I feel pretty strongly that kids need to learn not just from toys designed for learning but also by interacting with everyday items. So even though a pen, for example, might be a choking hazard, I let her play with that and other things from time to time. Again, with my closer supervision.

*We didn’t read to Baby B as part of our bedtime routine until she’d dropped the bedtime nursing session. Now, we did read to Baby B at other times of the day, and she’s always had access and exposure to books, but we didn’t include stories as part of our bedtime routine until January. Bad Mom-mom!

*For a while, around 8 to 12 months or so, we let her nap on us. It was the only way she’d take a nap longer than half an hour, so we’d sit in the recliner or on the couch, lay her tummy down on our chest, and snooze away together. Thankfully around 11 to 12 months, she transitioned to taking one long nap a day (as opposed to two super-short naps), and she also was much better at napping in her crib at this time. I do miss our tandem naps, but I’m afraid to disrupt the long crib nap habit for fear of her not doing nearly as well as she does now (finally).

Mom rules

As moms, we all have our preferred parenting issues that we take more of a stand about than other issues, and it’s certainly not the same for each mom. Some moms are strict about feeding their kids only organic foods, for example, while other moms don’t find that to be as important. Yet those non-organic-feeding moms may feel strongly about flipping their baby back to their back once they can roll to their tummy, while that’s not as big of a deal to other moms. We all certainly have our own comfort level for when we make our parenting decisions, and sometimes those decisions can be explained fully, but other times it’s just something you feel strongly about (or not) but can’t really put your finger on why.

Here are some of the parenting issues that we’ve felt pretty strongly about following. (And I’m not making judgments about those people who do the opposite of what we do; some of these are very personal decisions. I’m just including some of our reasons for making our choices in these matters.)

*We made all of our own baby foods. I like to cook and bake, and I liked to cook for Baby B because it helped me feel like I was including her more as part of the family when preparing our meal. It really wasn’t that hard, even with working full time, and I liked knowing exactly what was going into her food and knowing that we were using the freshest possible fruits and vegetables. We never did use any jarred foods.

*No juice. I’d much rather she get her fruits through actual fruits than through juice, so we set a no juice rule. She drinks water and milk just fine, so I don’t see the point, really, since I feel it’s empty calories that can really do a number on her teeth. We’ve made it clear to the daycare that she’s not to get juice with her snacks (they serve it with both snacks each day; they get milk with lunch), though we’ve learned that Baby B is the only kid in her class to not get juice. We did allow them an exception and will let them serve it for occasional holiday parties, but at no other time. She does not get it at home.

*No padded crib bumper. Chances are good that she’d be okay with a padded crib bumper and wouldn’t succumb to SIDS or suffocation, but we didn’t feel comfortable with the risk. Even if only one child died in a ten-year period, that’s one too many deaths if it’s your child who died. We used no bumper at first, then bought a breathable mesh bumper once we saw she was getting her arms and legs stuck between the slats. It’s worked very well for us. It might not be as “cute,” but I’ll sacrifice cuteness for safety.

*Nothing in the crib until after a year. We took this one very seriously, and she had no blankets, stuffed animals, or other toys in her crib until she turned a year old. Again, the risk for suffocation isn’t great, but we figured why risk it when it’s something we can easily prevent?

*No co-sleeping at night. This just wasn’t something we were comfortable doing for a variety of reasons. Sometimes we would bring Baby B to our bed on weekend mornings to nurse there so I could get some more rest after I returned to work (though rarely went to sleep because she always wanted to play after nursing), but even that stopped when I weaned from nursing. I feel pretty strongly that I’d like to keep our time in bed as being sort of a retreat/escape from being a parent. We get little enough alone time as it is, and I’d prefer to keep that time in bed as ours.

*No pacifiers after 6 months. Okay, we “cheated” a little with this one, only because Baby B weaned herself from the pacifier around 4 months old, so it was never really an issue that we had to address, but it’s still one that we felt pretty strongly about and would have taken steps to make happen had it continued. It makes me uncomfortable to see some other toddlers in Baby B’s class (and especially in the 2s/3s room) with pacifiers nearly all the time, and I didn’t want her to be in that position.

*No Bumbo seat on raises surfaces. I’m really surprised by how many pictures I see of kids sitting in a Bumbo on a tabletop. Bumbos were recalled in order to include a warning against doing this, but even before then, I don’t think it ever really occurred to me to put it on a table or other raised surface because it seemed like a bit of a hazard.

*No diaper bags hanging on strollers. A smaller issue than some of the ones above, but I’m also surprised by how many diaper bags I see hanging on strollers, even though every stroller owner’s manual I’ve read says not to do this. I’d much rather carry the darned thing than risk tipping her over accidentally.

*Very little exposure to TV. We try to have music turned on most of the time when Baby B is playing. We never have her sit down to watch TV shows or DVDs (though really, I can’t imagine something keeping her attention enough to sit through and actually watch, as I’d consider her very active and I suspect she’d choose to do other things instead).

*No headbands, head bows, or earrings. I personally think they look silly. And I’ll just leave it at that.

Wordless Wednesday: Her serious side

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That’s not in my job description

When one of my part-time proofreaders at work (who is twice my age, I should mention) begins acting less mature than the two graduate student proofreaders I have working for me, it quickly reminds me that I don’t want to be forced to be a mother both at home and at work. At home, I love the job, and it’s worthwhile because I’ve got so much invested in it…and I get a lot back. But at work, I think people should be mature enough to act in a responsible and unchildlike manner and I shouldn’t have to put a stop to petty temper tantrums over insignificant things that are beyond my control anyway. (The details are boring and would take too much time to explain, so I’ll just leave it at being general.)

There are many days I wish I didn’t have to work, but there are so many other times I love the fact that it gives me a chance to pursue interests outside the home and really challenge myself in ways that are different from the everyday mom challenges I face at home. I think it not only helps me be a little more well-rounded overall than I might be otherwise, but I think it helps me truly appreciate the time I do have with Baby B. So when I have to bring out my mom persona at work, I think I become a bit resentful and annoyed that I’m having to put my efforts toward that instead of saving such energy for my own child at home. Especially when I’m dealing with people who should know better.

I am more than happy to not be paid actual money for the parenting I do at home, but I’m not paid enough at work to act like a mom to those who need to find a way to grow up.

Well-baby check. Check!

We went to the pediatrician for Baby B’s 15-month check-up early this morning, and it went well. She weighed in at 21 pounds and 9 ounces, which puts her in the 25th to 50th percentile for the first time after hovering in the 10th to 25th percentile range before now. So, the pediatrician said he’s not concerned about her pickiness with eating because she’s doing more than fine with weight gain. He said we can give her a vitamin if we feel she has a particularly bad day, which has been our approach already. (Though I’m glad to report that moving to the booster seat does seem to be helping somewhat.)

She measured 30 inches tall, so a solid 2 1/2 feet from top to bottom, and a 1 1/2-inch increase from her 12-month appointment. That keeps her in the 25th to 50th percentile for height. Her soft spot has completely closed, and her tubes look great. She’s got bulges in her gums back in the molars area, but so far none have come through.  (I suspected that was the case, but she won’t let me feel back there.)

She wasn’t too crazy about the physical exam, crying throughout, but she calmed down when she was picked up again. I didn’t get to answer any weird milestone questions on the piece of paper this time, though the doctor did ask me things about her verbal development, if she can understand some of what we say to her (I said that yes, it always surprises us just how much she understands of what we say), and if she was walking yet (he wanted to see a demonstration to make sure she was where she should be). The nurse came back in for one shot in the thigh, which brought on the tears, but she did fine once I picked her up again.

We return in late July for her 18-month appointment (holy crap…she’ll be 18 months before long!!), and hopefully we’ll keep the pediatrician visits to a minimum before the next well-baby visit.

Fun evenings at the park

Spring in my step

Spring is in the air, and I must say that I’ve felt noticeably extra happy this week. Not that I’ve been unhappy in previous weeks or months, but something about the springtime in our area always boosts my mood. I love witnessing the rebirth of all the trees and shrubs that went dormant over the winter. I love seeing just-born foals in the lush green pastures surrounding our city. I love the feeling of anticipation that comes when thinking about the upcoming summer. I love the weather that’s warm enough for short sleeves but not yet hot, humid, and miserable. I love driving in the car with the windows down and the sunroof open. I love spending time outdoors.

But this spring feels extra special because we’ve been able to enjoy it with Baby B. We did a lot of fun things with her last spring, but she was only about 3 months old this time last year, so she wasn’t quite able to take in all that the spring has to offer. But this year, she’s active and walking around, she’s curious, and she’s eager to learn and play and have fun. Getting to watch her discover new things outdoors helps me revel in even the small things, and it makes me so happy. Her laughter, which comes quite often when we’re out and about, is contagious.

We took long walks early in the week, and then the past two nights, we went to two different parks in the city and just had a blast each night. I had not a single other care in the world besides playing with my sweet girl, and it felt good. I have a feeling this is going to be a great spring and summer.

Toddler tidbits

There are so many little tidbits I want to share, but they don’t necessarily warrant posts of their own, so I’ll just collect them here.

*We’re going to buy a booster seat this weekend and see if that helps Baby B with her eating. She eats breakfast and snacks fine (not in the high chair) and she’s done well the last few nights being in her high chair but without the tray, so I’m thinking maybe it’s time to try the booster. I’ll keep you posted.

*There is not much better than having a toddler in the springtime. The weather around here has been absolutely perfect–upper 60s/low 70s and perfectly sunny–so we’ve really taken advantage of it the past few nights. When we first get home, we take Baby B outside and let her walk by herself on the sidewalk (well, I mean, we’re right there, too…I just meant by herself in that she’s not in a stroller) and play in the grass in the front yard. Then we get out the stroller, leash up the dog, and take a nice walk around the neighborhood. I’m already looking forward to doing it tonight, too.

*Baby B loves to go outside. She notices everything, including airplanes flying overhead (we live a few miles from the airport, right on the incoming flight path) and loves pointing out things she sees, especially dogs.

*Baby B calls nearly every animal she sees a dog. Or a “dog-doh,” which is her word for dog. We’re working with her to differentiate the animals. She did say “cat” the other day, so I think she’s starting to see there’s a difference in what these other animals are called.

*I really make an effort around the house to make Baby B walk everywhere we need to go despite the pre-walking habit of carrying her around. Quite often she gets sidetracked when something more interesting draws her attention, but she’s usually pretty good about following along when I tell her where we’re going and what we’re doing.

*It’s funny that I recently made a post about Baby B not really being drawn to stuffed animals because shortly after that, she started to take a liking to them. We let her sleep with a soft dog that lets you record your voice (thanks, C!), and she loves to hug that before bed. She’s also got a neon stuffed turtle (thanks, L & D!) that stays in her crib. She usually doesn’t snuggle up with them, but I know she plays with them sometimes. We’re fine with her keeping these toys in the crib for now, unless she starts to throw them out of the crib. Then we might have to reevaluate.

*We’ve resisted buying a video monitor because we aren’t comfortable with the idea that they’re not digital (the only digital ones I can find don’t have good reviews), which means that any neighbor could tap into our system and watch Baby B whenever the monitor is on. I have a feeling we may cave when it’s time for Baby B to sleep in a toddler bed and she can get up and play in her room whenever the mood strikes. Hopefully by that time comes around, there will be a good digital monitor on the market.

*I learned yesterday that Baby B loves dill pickle chips. I just gave her tiny pieces of mine as I ate them because I don’t want her to have too much sodium, but it was still fun to see her so eager about it. Why, oh, why can’t pickles be loaded with tons of vitamins and minerals?

*We got some light-up bath toys that have suction cups on them, and Baby B has fun playing with those. Suction cups have turned out to be a very good learning tool for her. You never really think about the fact that you have to learn how they work. As adults, we just know how they work, but it’s new and fascinating to a toddler. I think that’s one of the best things about having a child because it forces you to take a new look at everyday things and not take things for granted.

*I really should try to think of a new blog name for Baby B; she’s not really a baby anymore.

*Baby B devours bananas, but she prefers to hold it herself in the peel. Banana slices are still usually eaten, but they don’t go over nearly as well as whole bananas in the peel.

*At the end of “Down by the Station” (one of our bedtime songs), you pump your arms as though tooting a train whistle, and Baby B sometimes will do it along with us, at just the right time.  We start out “The Grand Ol’ Duke of York” with an extended, “Ohhhhhhh!!” We sing the song twice, but sometimes she lets us know she wants to sing it a third time by singing out, “Ohhhhhhh!!!!”

*She has started doing intentionally silly walks, which I remember my niece doing when she was around this age. Unfortunately, they’re pretty hard to describe properly in words, so I’ll have to work on getting some video I can post. 

Wordless Wednesday: The pregnancy I never talk about

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Guest Post: Dakin it one kiss at a time

Further back than I can really remember, my brother or I (or very likely both of us) unashamedly hijacked a trio of stuffed kittens from my aunt. I don’t recall the exact motivation behind our blatant thievery, but it was probably along the lines of “the kitties will be happier with us!”

We gave the the hostage stuffies very sensible names. Following a precedent we’d learned from any number of previous stuffed animals, we checked the tag: voila, the first, gray kitten was named Dakin. At least, I can only assume the gray one was named first. As it turned out, all of the cats had the same tag, put there by the Dakin toy company.  Eventually we figured this out, and the other two ended up with names to suit their colors (Snowball, and Butterscotch).  However, even after we knew better, the little gray stayed Dakin instead of becoming Smoke.

Now the kittens are gradually being snatched away again. They’ve been doing duty in Baby B’s room as plush decorations atop a bookshelf… until a couples weeks ago, when she finally noticed them. Every night after story time and songs, she points up to them and makes insistent little demands until she’s lifted up high to say good night to all three. Sometimes she picks them all up and hugs them, or kisses them on their little plastic noses. Lucky things!

I think it’s fair to assume she’ll make up her own favorite names for them, despite us telling her what I’ve always called them. Which makes me wonder: Did my aunt name them something completely different? Were they originally Fluffy, Muffy, and Zip? Who knows! I just hope the little guys don’t get a complex from all this helter skelter adoration.

A book is worth a thousand ideas

Just when we had the whole baby-rearing thing down perfectly, we then had this toddler mysteriously show up at our house one day after daycare. She sure looks like the baby we had before, but she sure doesn’t always act like our sweet and innocent girl. Our first sign of “trouble”–and her struggle for independence–came with our recent food battles, which I’ve mentioned here before. But after a couple times of her throwing herself down on the floor and fake-crying (I know it was fake…I can tell) inconsolably, I decided it was time to turn to the books.

I’ve never been much of a fan of “book parenting.” In fact, the only parenting book I’ve read so far has been “The Happiest Baby on the Block,” which I do highly recommend. But mostly I’m just not crazy about reading some psychologist’s theories and hypotheses on raising kids because I fully recognize that each child is very different, and it can become frustrating to read those books and expect certain things but then your child suddenly feels like the exception to the theory. So I’ve generally tried to stay away from those kinds of books. But knowing that we have many, many toddler battles ahead, I decided I needed some kind of outside source. We already have “The Happiest Toddler on the Block,” but The Husband has that on his nightstand, so I’d been keeping my eye out for other books that might be interesting. I still didn’t really want a psychologist-written parenting theory book, but instead just a general overview of what issues may come up in toddlerhood and some ideas of how to deal with them. I don’t need the theories right now, but just some ideas.

I ran across a used copy of “The Everything Toddler Book,” so I decided to pick it up. It’s a nice, easy, non-theory-heavy book, and so far I’ve enjoyed reading it. (Well, except for the extended section that came from left field on why co-sleeping is a good idea and how other cultures think Americans are cruel for not letting our babies share our beds and how it’s basically the only way to make your infant/toddler feel secure and safe. I appreciate that it was addressed, but it didn’t really take into account that many parents are not comfortable with that arrangement for a variety of reasons. But I digress.)  But man, it’s quite overwhelming reading about all the things that toddlers need to learn, and the approaches that are best to deal with their behaviors so you encourage independence and self-sufficiency without saying things (inadvertently) that deflate them. It’s amazing how much learning and processing goes on during this two-year period, and it’s a little overwhelming if you think about it too much. But we’ll approach it as with did with the infant year: take things day by day and deal with issues as they arise. We can’t possibly plan for every scenario, so we’ll do our best to go with the flow and figure things out on our own for the most part.

And, you know, if we mess up too much, then Baby B can become a psychologist and write her own parenting how-to book one day.

Tonight’s menu: Increased pickiness with a side of self-induced vomiting

Ug, I’m so frustrated and just need a place to get this out. I rarely use this space as a place to genuinely vent, but I really need to right now. I thought we had Baby B’s eating issues figured out to the point of being reasonably happy with how meals were going, but we’ve taken a few steps back in the past week. At first I thought it was because she had that stomach bug last week that threw things off, but I’m not so sure now. I think we’ve got another layer of the independence thing emerging, and I feel like I’m at the end of my rope in dealing with it…and we’re only just beginning.

So here’s how a typical dinner has gone for us over the past week. I spend about 45 minutes making probably 4-5 different items for Baby B’s dinner (in addition to whatever I’m making for dinner for me and The Husband, which we also offer parts of) because I have no idea what she’ll want to eat that night due to her pickiness. And just because she’s liked a food before doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll eat it again that night. If I make just one or two things for her and she doesn’t eat them, then that leaves her with nothing, so I feel like I need to make a variety of items so it increases the chance of her liking something.

We sit down to eat and first offer her the food that she’s least likely to eat; some kids are more receptive to these types of food when they’re the most hungry. Either she’ll pick it up, put it in her mouth, and promptly spit it out accompanied by a disgusted face, or she won’t even give it a chance and automatically throws it on the floor. We try again. Same result. We try again. Same result. You get the idea.

We move on to food #2. Usually this is something she likes a little better and she’ll eat a few bites of that before either deciding that she wants nothing to do with it or trying to give it to The Dog. We gradually offer foods #3 and #4, as well as some more of #1. Probably 90% of it doesn’t ever make it into her mouth, and the of the 10% that does, probably 1% is actually swallowed.

Baby B then decides to become eager about eating. We get excited but suspicious. She’s eating corn. She’s eating beans. She’s eating carrots. She’s eating oyster crackers. Next thing we know, she decides that instead of drinking milk and chewing and swallowing this food, she’d rather stick her finger in her mouth and make herself throw up. What little food she actually had swallowed comes out. We clean up the vomit and the high chair tray. Sit down for round 2.

She’ll pick at a few more things, but round 2 generally consists of throwing food off her tray. The Dog is very happy. We quickly decide her dinnertime is over and move on to her fruit, which she always eats. (Perhaps her antics are just a plot to get to the fruit, and maybe we’re just encouraging her by still giving her the fruit after all this instead of withholding it. I can see how that’s true, but since she eats so little, I also feel like I need to let her have the few things she’ll actually eat.)

So, she eats her fruit eagerly. Fruit is gone. We begin cleaning off her hands and face and she seems to have this urge to put her fingers in her mouth and make herself throw up again. I’ve read that you’re supposed to completely ignore this behavior as it’s just a means of getting attention and/or asserting their independence, but I honestly don’t see how that’s realistic when 1) we have to clean up the mess that would ensue, and 2) she already hasn’t eaten much in the first place and I’d prefer it stays in her tummy. So we take turns deflecting her hand from her mouth and saying, “Uh-uh!” as her finger seems to gravitate toward it as though it’s possessed. Usually she does not manage to actually throw up during this charade.

Thus ends dinnertime, with stresses high and bellies not full. I really, really try not to show my stress to her and give her that attention that she’s begging for because I know she just feeds off of that, but it’s so hard. We’ve tried so many approaches to this, and I just don’t know what to do next. We’ve tried cutting back on her afternoon snack and how close to dinner she has it. We’ve tried ignoring her at dinner (other than to offer her more food; we can’t give it all to her or she’d toss the whole plate off the tray) and just letting her do her own thing without us hovering. We’ve tried micromanaging dinner. We’ve hoped that once she went without much dinner one night that she might be more eager to eat the next day. We’ve tried feeding her, and we’ve tried letting her feed herself. Nothing has worked, and it’s becoming more frustrating than probably anything we’ve dealt with so far. Seriously, there’s no way we can take her to a restaurant and have her put on this show for others.

And this comes on top of a week when Baby B seems to have more of a preference for The Husband than for me. She’s thrown multiple fits to end all fits for me when I’ve been in charge, but as soon as Dad comes back, she’s pretty much all smiles and laughs. I’d say it’s again the assertion of her independence thing, and she’s feeling the need to assert it against me more right now, but it’s so hard not to take it personally. I know I just need to suck it up and get used to it, because the rest of her life is going to be spent edging herself away from me and needing me less and less, but it’s such a hard transition after the first year when they need and want you for everything.

So yeah. I don’t really know where I’m going with this other than just getting it out and hopefully clearing my head of the frustration. The last time this happened, it lasted a couple weeks, so I hope this passes quickly and we get back to enjoying dinnertime. I love to cook, but I hate making all that food if it’s just going to end up on the floor. The Dog sure loves us right now, though.

The next steps (aka Advanced Walking 202)

*I thought I was being a slacker recently as I haven’t taken nearly as many pictures of Baby B as before, but then I realized that the decline started right as she started walking everywhere. Little bug is fast, I tell you!! I’ll let her roam to other rooms by herself a lot of the time and she usually comes back out on her own, but if she’s in a room and out of my sight for longer than a minute or so, I have to go hunting for her. She doesn’t stay still long enough to let me get my camera, let alone take a picture. Maybe I should just keep the camera on video mode all the time now.

*I let Baby B walk on the sidewalk for the first time by herself without holding my hand, and I have to admit that it made me so nervous! She can get started walking so fast, and quite often she leans her entire body forward as she takes her forward steps, and I’m terrified she’s going to trip over something or just misstep and fall on her chin. It’s one thing to fall on the living room carpet, but another to fall on concrete. She did trip once a couple days ago but had good reflexes and caught herself fine on her hands. It’s not too much to hope she always catches herself, is it?

*Yesterday when I was home with Baby B (we had to keep her home again on Thursday because her chest congestion was too bad), she walked backwards for the first time, taking probably six or seven carefully calculated steps, followed by about four or five sideways steps. (She also did it a few more times throughout the day.) It’s so fun to see how proud of herself she is when she does new things like this! And it’s just a fraction of the pride that ignites inside me at these times.

*One of the things on our to-do list for the summer is go to the Cincinnati Children’s Museum to let Baby B explore the toddler-friendly exhibits. (We have a children’s museum here, but it doesn’t have much geared toward younger toddlers.) The one thing we were waiting for before making the trip was for her to start walking well, and it looks like that’s been checked off our list. I don’t know yet when we’re going to head up there, but I can’t wait. We’ll probably also put a trip to the zoo on our itinerary when we’re in the area. I’d love to do it soon when all the zoo babies are tiny.

*You know one of the big reasons I’ve been excited for Baby B to walk? Not just because it’s a big milestone, but because crawling makes the knees of her pants very dirty. I know she’ll still find ways (and new ways, at that!) to get her play clothes dirty, but I’m definitely glad to be past the dirty knees of crawling.

I’m a loser, baby

Twelve weeks ago, my company started a weight-loss challenge aimed at getting people back in shape in a healthy way. The general idea was that weigh-ins would be every two weeks during the 12-week period, and whoever lost the biggest percentage of weight would win a prize for that weigh-in. Then, at the end of the 12-week period, whoever lost the biggest percentage of weight overall would win a $100 gift card, with the second-place finisher getting a $50 gift card.

I got off to a good start and won the first weigh-in, choosing some ankle/wrist weights as my prize for the week (since I was the first winner, I got my pick of all the prizes!). I maintained a steady loss overall, but had recently hit a plateau that I couldn’t get past, so I took up running every day for the last two weeks to help jump-start things again. Of course, all it turns out that I needed was a nice little stomach bug a few days before the final weigh-in. LOL

We weighed in for the final prize yesterday. During the 12-week span, I’m proud to say that I lost 22.4 pounds. Unfortunately, that was only good for third place, but the good news was that our health insurance company donated a $25 gas gift card to the prizes, so I received that as an unplanned prize for third place. I have to admit, I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t win first or second place, but the good news is that I feel motivated to keep going and continue losing weight, even if I don’t have the bi-weekly work weigh-in motivation.

What’s great is that my company is doing a 24-week “still losing” prize for the person who loses the greatest percentage of their weight between now and July 16. I don’t have any specific numbers in mind that I’d like to hit by then (that always seems to get me in trouble when I get my hopes up too much), but I feel confident that I can keep this up, especially if I invest in some good running shoes (oh, my aching knees!) and maybe another workout DVD. We don’t have a specific timeline in mind for trying again for another baby (at least not that I’ve been told!), but my goal is to be in the best shape I can be going into that next pregnancy because I know it’s going to benefit me in so many ways.

Wordless Wednesday: Pondering all the reasons to ignore Mom re: touching the dog food

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Recovering from rumbles

I’m feeling mostly better though still have some tummy rumblings when I drink liquids. It seems my stomach bug hit hard but also eased up a little faster Baby B’s and The Husband’s. But my god was I miserable on Sunday night, and it was amazing how fast it hit. One minute I was fine after getting home from work, then I took a bite of dinner and said, “Hrm, I think I have to throw up.” LIttle did I know what the night had in store for me. I’ll spare the details, but it wasn’t pretty. I really don’t remember the last time I had a stomach bug, though the vomiting reminded me quite a bit of the awful morning sickness I had…though this time I didn’t have the consolation, “Well, at least I’ll hopefully get a baby out of it after all this misery.” No light at the end of this tunnel, folks. Just a crappy (heh heh) stomach bug.

Baby B is doing some better with her diarrhea (and for one thing, it’s not nearly as frequent, which is good), but now she’s got some chest congestion and an occasional runny nose, which actually may be related to the virus. We’ll probably keep her home again on Wednesday and aim to return to daycare on Thursday if she’s doing better.

Baby B weighed in at 20 pounds and 7 ounces yesterday at the doctor’s office, down from 21 pounds and 2 ounces just two weeks before, but they weren’t too concerned with her weight loss in light of her virus. He said they become concerned once the weight loss hits 5% to 10% of her starting weight, but hers came in at about 3.3%.

I’ve lost probably 3 or 4 pounds from this virus myself. That’s often not such a bad thing, though I can think of better ways to lose weight!

Stomach bug

I don’t have the energy for a full post, as Baby B and I have been hit with the stomach bug that The Husband had last week. Hers started on Friday night, and mine hit hard last night. I was off work anyway today, so I took her in to the doctor, even though I figured it was a stomach bug and we couldn’t do much about it. I was right, as we got a diagnosis of gastroenteritis and really nothing to do besides keeping her hydrated. Taking care of her today while being miserable myself was very challenging, but at least I haven’t puked (oh, it was bad!) in about 15 hours now, though other symptoms are still in full force. We’re keeping her home tomorrow and The Husband and I will split the day at home with her.

Anyway, I just wanted to check in quickly since I hadn’t written at all over the weekend. Now I’m going to try to do my best to keep down something for dinner.

A day in the (post-nursing) life of Baby B, part 2

This is her typical weekend routine.  Again, the times can vary somewhat, but this is what’s usual for us nowadays.

8 or 8:30 a.m. - Baby B wakes us up.
8:30 a.m. - Diaper change.
8:40 a.m. - The Husband feeds Baby B either fruit yogurt or fruit oatmeal for breakfast and whole milk.
8:50 a.m. - Playtime! We do any number of activities from reading to throwing the ball to coloring. Really too many to list, but we try to keep things fresh and new. Plus Baby B has a short attention span (obviously), so she wants to move on to other activities frequently.
10:30 a.m. - Snacktime.
10:45 a.m. - More playtime.
12:00 p.m. - One of us starts making lunch for the family.
12:30 p.m. - Sit down and eat lunch.
1:00 p.m. - Baby B’s nap. She usually sleeps about 2 1/2 or 3 hours now that she’s down to one nap a day.
4:00 p.m. - Baby B wakes up (or sometimes we have to wake her up). Time for afternoon snack.
4:15 p.m. - More playtime!
5:45 p.m. - Either The Husband or I begin working on dinner while the other plays with Baby B.
6:30 p.m. - Diaper check. Eat dinner together.
7:05 p.m. - Bath time (if it’s a bath night). If it’s not a bath night, it’s playtime or we go for a walk.
7:30 p.m. - Change diaper. Change Baby B into pajamas. She brushes her teeth. Pick out books to read.
7:40 p.m. - Storytime, usually reading 2-5 books depending on how long they are and how tired Baby B is acting. Baby B wanders around the room, usually playing with other books.
7:55 p.m. - Sing songs, always in this order: “Down By the Station,” “Grand Old Duke of York,” “This is the Way the Farmer Rides,” “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider,” and “Pat-a-Cake.”
8:00 p.m. - Put up books. Baby B points at and wants to go over to touch a pink elephant rattle on her pink elephant wall hook. Baby B excitedly pets The Dog one last time. Baby B gets a mommy hug. The Husband turns on XM Audio Visions and the Fisher Price crib aquarium (set to the sound of waves), then puts her in the crib (usually very awake).
8:05 p.m. - We leave the room and Baby B plays on her own for about 5 or 10 minutes, then goes to sleep.
8:10 p.m. - “Free” time for The Parents. Usually consists of working out, cleaning up after dinner, catching up on e-mails and message boards, and cleaning or other things around the house.
11:30 p.m. or midnight - My bedtime.

A day in the (post-nursing) life of Baby B, part 1

I did this a while ago after Baby B had started daycare, but I just wanted to record her current routine here, not because I think it’s particularly interesting or that it makes for good reading, but I think it’ll be nice to look back at later on.

This is her weekday routine. The times are typically about the same each day, but sometimes it’s give or take maybe 15 minutes. Stay tuned tomorrow for her weekend routine. (I’m sure you’ll be on the edge of your seat.)

5:45 a.m. - I get up and take a shower.
6:25 a.m. - Wake up The Husband. Blow-dry hair and put on make-up. (On me, not The Husband.)
6:30 a.m. - The Husband wakes up Baby B and changes her diaper. I make her breakfast (either yogurt or oatmeal with fruit) and get set up to feed her.
6:40 a.m. - Feed Baby B breakfast. The Husband takes shower and gets ready for work.
6:45 a.m. - Supervise Baby B playing with The Dog.
7:10 a.m. - Pick out daycare clothes for Baby B and get her dressed. Make sure daycare bag is ready.
7:30 a.m. - See off The Husband and Baby B.
7:35 a.m. - Make my breakfast and eat.
7:50 a.m. - Finish getting dressed.
7:55 a.m. - Leave for work. Work from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., with a lunch break from 2-3 p.m. (I like taking it later so my afternoon feels shorter.)

(At daycare)
8:00 a.m. - Baby B has snack.
8:30 a.m. - Artwork; circle time; singing; learning shapes, colors, and numbers; and other structured learning activities.
11:15 a.m. - Lunch is served.
11:45 a.m. - Naptime.
2:00 p.m. - Wake up from nap. Have afternoon snack.
2:15 p.m. - Free play. Go to outdoor playground if weather is nice.

5:00 p.m. - I leave work.
5:10 p.m. - Arrive at daycare to pick up Baby B. Chat with teacher for about 10 minutes.
5:30 p.m. - Arrive home. Diaper check. Put away things from daycare. Small snack for Baby B.
5:45 p.m. - Either The Husband or I begin working on dinner while the other plays with Baby B.
6:30 p.m. - Diaper check. Eat dinner together.
7:05 p.m. - Bath time (if it’s a bath night). If it’s not a bath night, it’s playtime or we go for a walk.
7:30 p.m. - Change diaper. Change Baby B into pajamas. She brushes her teeth. Pick out books to read.
7:40 p.m. - Storytime, usually reading 2-5 books depending on how long they are and how tired Baby B is acting. Baby B wanders around the room, usually playing with other books.
7:55 p.m. - Sing songs, always in this order: “Down By the Station,” “Grand Old Duke of York,” “This is the Way the Farmer Rides,” “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider,” and “Pat-a-Cake.”
8:00 p.m. - Put up books. Baby B points at and wants to go over to touch a pink elephant rattle on her pink elephant wall hook. Baby B excitedly pets The Dog one last time. Baby B gets a mommy hug. The Husband turns on XM Audio Visions and the Fisher Price crib aquarium (set to the sound of waves), then puts her in the crib (usually very awake).
8:05 p.m. - We leave the room and Baby B plays on her own for about 5 or 10 minutes, then goes to sleep.
8:10 p.m. - “Free” time for The Parents. Usually consists of working out, cleaning up after dinner, catching up on e-mails and message boards, and cleaning or other things around the house.
10:30 p.m. or 11 p.m. - My bedtime.

Wordless Wednesday: Puppy play

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Baldy Baby B

It’s funny because there are so many times that I look at Baby B, and I’m so used to seeing her with no hair or now with very short hair that I have such a hard time imagining her with a full head of it. Will it be straight as a stick? Will it be curly? What color will it end up being? Will she want it long or short? Will her big brown eyes still be the dominant feature on her face when she has hair?

I guess we’ll find out before long.