# August '05 Mamas-Dec Thread! It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year..



## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Happy December Mamas! I think it's about time for me to start a thread this month! The holidays are truly my favorite time of the year!

Wow another year's coming to an end and our little toddler are growing up faster as ever.

Let me start off the season right by announcing that I officially have another bun in the oven! I'm PREGNANT!





















And I am hoping for a







this time! *fingers crossed*

Christmas decorations, mistletoes, carols, christmas lights on trees and houses, snow falling outside....

yes mamas, I do believe this is the most wonderful time of the year!


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

Yay, Nonny! What a wonderful start to the thread!!
Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Nonny -- Congrats. So happy for you! How far along are you and when do you expect this new DD to be born? Hope you are feeling well -- this is a great time of year. Even when you're not feeling so festive, it does a body good ... or so I've found. Happy December, everyone!


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Wow! Congrats, Nonny-how exciting! When is your babe due? Hope your pregnancy goes smoothly!

Eek-I am not ready for it to be December (hey wait, it's still November today, right?!) Someone asked in the last thread about Christmas traditions, and this is something DH and I have been talking about a lot. There are some from childhood we want to continue, and some we want to create. Most of our childhood ones are fun (singing/food/festivities and new jammies on xmas eve, decorating the tree, stockings, advent calendars, etc), but there's not much meaning behind them. We want to instill in DD (and future DC's) that it's a time of family/friend togetherness, fun, recognizing your blessings, and giving. We started making old fashioned candy to give away last year, which is fun for us, but not something DD can participate in just yet. We are helping out a single mom this year, and donating some $ for kids in Africa (farming and school supplies). I think we are going to go to a tree farm this year, where they have sleigh rides, you go pick/cut down your tree, they dress it for you, and you have cider, etc., outside. I also like the idea of making an ornament each year. I think I'd like to do something on the 21st too, to recognize the solstice/return of light. Any ideas? I'm sure there's more but my brain is fried. I am exhausted: AF this month is BRUTAL (I think the last few months have just been warm up, ha ha), and I've been running every day (yay for me, almost 20 km this week, but I am knackered)! And we are getting the house painted this week, so I've spent the last two days polyfillaing walls, sanding and cleaning walls, and moving stuff out of the rooms to be painted. I think I may go take a nap while DD is down!

Take care, ladies!


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## jillmamma (Apr 11, 2005)

I think I missed last month's thread, but subbing this time.

Congrats, Nonny!!! I guess Christopher will be about 2 when the baby comes then?

Had our 15 month checkup, and she is still a petite little thing. 29" and 17 lb 2 oz. 8% for height and below 5% in weight. She is meeting and exceeding all her milestones...not just walking, but running, saying lots of words (15 or 20?) plus signs more, milk, and almost does please. The doctor is a bit concerned about her weight since she only gaing 10 oz in 3 months, so he wants to see her again at 18 months. He said to continue nursing as we are and offer her more solids as well, including some higher calorie ones like full fat dairy products. The cutest thing though was as we were leaving, we saw a little baby (about 5 months) in his carrier and she goes "ba!" ("ba" means ball, bye, and baby in Michelleish) and was smiling and pointing at him.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Thanks everyone!









The thing is.....I want to see my old ob/gyn who birthed Christopher because we know him, trust him and etc. BUT he is a very busy doctor and his next open appointment for me is beginning of January. So he wanted me to get a blood test done at my family doctor to see how far along I am. That was the result I have been waiting for in the past 1 1/2 weeks.

So I found out yesterday that I am around 6-8 weeks but dunno what the gender is yet. That will make the due date around June/July I believe. And yes Christopher will be almost 2! I have a feeling its a girl because I felt it move today and its sitting pretty high next to my belly button. I remember DS was always moving lower down. Girls like to hang around higher in the belly than boys right? At least that's what I've heard. And also I haven't really feel pregnant, other than the weight, I haven't felt nausea, cramps yet, which was diifferent from DS, soooo that was why I guessed a girl. I am HOPING for a girl this time! Need to balance out with some more female hoormones in this family!


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## chiro_kristin (Dec 31, 2004)

Congratulations Nonny! Pretty girl vibes for you! And of course more healthy baby vibes. I'm slightly jealous, I must admit.

Thanks for starting the thread. The title put a smile on my face and a whistling tune on my lips (Johnny Mathis version in my head).

Jillmamma, Michelle sounds like she is doing great! Sounds like she is so active and busy that she spends all of her energy!


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

congrats nonny- how exciting

- kerri


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## CarenSwan (Sep 29, 2005)

Hi gang! I think I completely missed November, what with one of my bfs having baby #2, my sil getting married, and Thanksgiving! I'm glad to start fresh with a new month.

Nonny, what great news!!! Congratulations! I just found out that our pastor's wife is pregnant with their first. They just told us tonight and they are SOOO excited. I love hearing about new babies coming into the world!

Jill, I'm with Kristen! It sounds like Michelle is just burning up those calories! My dd is no where near running! (Well, I guess I shouldn't say that--it'll be here before I know it I'm sure!)


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

:














nonny, that's so exciting! i'm soo happy for you and your family!!!

happy december, mamas!!! i love christmas and solstice! i pretty much love any reason to celebrate, but even better if it's all about being thankful, the spirit of giving, and celebrating love! we got laurel a wooden train set (dh's idea - he is very excited about this







) and a wooden tool set. not trying to promote her being a tomboy (although i certainly was), it's just what we thought she'd like. she loves the train set at the kids museum and she loves pounding things, so... and i got her some playdough today. we haven't played with playdough yet, so i'm pretty excited. it's been all about the paints lately. we've been painting every time we go to the kids museum, trying to get a painting for each of her grandparents for christmas.

laurels vocabulary hasn't increased much for awhile, but she's going crazy on the signs lately. she loves them. she's using
milk
drink
food
more
help
book
okay
dog
cat
potty
diaper
all regularly, and she can say quite a few more as we read the signing books - like bird, girl, boy, mom, dad...we're having fun with it and it's nice that she can communicate a lot of her needs.

we went to the naturopath today and determined that she doesn't have eczema. she did have one patch a few weeks back, but the bumps aren't eczema. so i'm increasing her fish oil intake and massaging oil into her skin more frequently. we tested for allergies to almost everything she eats and she's sensitive to carrots and pears (weird), tofu (big bummer) and cheddar bunnies (very sad). she's fine with gluten and dairy (go figure). and she has h.pylori. anyone have any experience with this? we were recommended an amazonian herbal tincture of cat's claw and others, and probiotics.

hope everyone is well and enjoying the most wonderful time of the year







!


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

We've got two threads going. i don't want anyone to miss the good news from post #1 of this thread! Woohoo
- Kerri


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Nonny - Congrats!!! Can I borrow some of your baby dust?

There are 2 December threads for us. heldt started one earlier. I posted and subbed there earlier today. What do we do now?


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## mags (May 4, 2004)

Congrats Nonny on your pregnancy!

I hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving. As usual, I start out at the beginning of the month keeping up with posts and then usually get too sidetracked or behind by the latter half of the month to keep up.







:

OK, I have a question for all of you ladies. *Do any of you have a VERY whiny 15 mo old???* My oldest didn't start to whine until recently (he's almost 3), so I expected that. However, jonah has ALWAYS been very whiny, and worse yet he lets out these blood curdling screams if he does not get his way (ie: you take something away from him that is dangerous, his brother takes a toy away from him, or if you don't feed him fast enough, etc). I have noticed that his whining is the worst when I am around. If I am not home, or if I am upstairs taking a nap while my DH is watching the kids, he hardly whines at all. I'm beginning to feel as if he is only whiny when he is around me.







: Are any of you in the same boat? If so, have you figured out any things to decrease the whining? I mean how do you reason with a 15 mo old? Jonah's very demanding, and I already spend much more time and energy on him compared to my older son (which I feel bad about, and luckily he is pretty mellow), when he goes on his whine and scream fests, I just feel like pulling my hair out and seriously my ears are ringing after he screams, I think I am going deaf. I honestly am kind of afraid of what he is going to be like as he gets older, since he is already so willful at such a young age.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *eastkygal* 
Nonny - Congrats!!! Can I borrow some of your baby dust?

There are 2 December threads for us. heldt started one earlier. I posted and subbed there earlier today. What do we do now?

That's ok if we have 2 threads , the more forums the merrier, just to have to keep up in both!!

Hmmm...baby dust ehh? sure you can borrow some









Seriously though, I do want another baby, I always wanted a girl, and I do want Christopher to have a sibling to fight with , I mean bond with. But I was still surprised in the end that I got pregnant again.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mags* 
Congrats Nonny on your pregnancy!

I hope everyone had a nice thanksgiving. As usual, I start out at the beginning of the month keeping up with posts and then usually get too sidetracked or behind by the latter half of the month to keep up.







:

OK, I have a question for all of you ladies. *Do any of you have a VERY whiny 15 mo old???* My oldest didn't start to whine until recently (he's almost 3), so I expected that. However, jonah has ALWAYS been very whiny, and worse yet he lets out these blood curdling screams if he does not get his way (ie: you take something away from him that is dangerous, his brother takes a toy away from him, or if you don't feed him fast enough, etc). I have noticed that his whining is the worst when I am around. If I am not home, or if I am upstairs taking a nap while my DH is watching the kids, he hardly whines at all. I'm beginning to feel as if he is only whiny when he is around me.







: Are any of you in the same boat? If so, have you figured out any things to decrease the whining? I mean how do you reason with a 15 mo old? Jonah's very demanding, and I already spend much more time and energy on him compared to my older son (which I feel bad about, and luckily he is pretty mellow), when he goes on his whine and scream fests, I just feel like pulling my hair out and seriously my ears are ringing after he screams, I think I am going deaf. I honestly am kind of afraid of what he is going to be like as he gets older, since he is already so willful at such a young age.

You know what? my DS actually whines more with my parents and in-laws, more with in-laws, because my in-laws are the ones who "spoils" him too much.

Here's an example: When I eat anywhere out with DS and my DH, I would never let him get up from the high chair or booth, and he would last through the whole meal without fussing too much. BUT when we eat out with my in-laws, DS would whine and cry very loudly for them to take him out and hold him or walk around. I think DS knows the whining won't have any effects on me, but it will make the in-laws listen to him. So maybe something to keep in mind.

I don't give DS any attention when he does whine and fuss at home, and now he knows that he won't get my attention so he stops after a little bit.

every kid is different...but i hope that helps.


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Nonny!!! Congratulations!!! How exciting!!! It will be fun to see if your girl baby prediction comes true. Thanks for sharing good news!

We're at the beach today...so quick post. It was a beatiful sunny day after the wettest November on record in Oregon. It was a blessing to have the sun and now there's a big moon over the ocean.

Gotta run--computer battery dying!!

Love to our toddlers and 1 new baby at Emily's house and 1 brand new baby in Nonny's belly!!!

--Adrienne


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Yeah, we've been TTC for about 4 months now. I want my child spacing to be close. AF came back when DD was 3 months old. I've been posting and lurking in Nursing Mamas TTC mostly.

DD and I miss DH horribly. They are removing lead from our home. I hope it will be done soon. DH has to stay in the city to work and we are staying with family in the mountains. It's good for DD to see her kinfolks and such, but I hate our family being seperated. DD hollers Dadda all throughout the day, especially after he comes and sees us for a day and then has to leave again.

She is using her words so well now. It used to be everytime she learned a new word the others were forgotten. Now, she retreiving all of them! It's so neat. Asking for what she wants etc... The answer to every question I ask her is "no" though. It's funny and frustrating both. It's amusing to ask her random questions for her to say "no" to.


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *eastkygal* 
It's amusing to ask her random questions for her to say "no" to.









Hee, hee-we have the opposite situation-E says "yeah!" to everything, and we are super immature and ask her things like "So do you want a poo-poo sandwich for lunch?" Yes, I am sometimes 12 years old. Thank goodness DH is too!

Hope your house is lead-free quickly and you can reunite with DH-that's hard!

With the whining, I just redirect/distract. I try not to respond (+ or -) to it, so that she won't see it as an effective way of getting my attention. I try to verbalize her frustration, briefly/simply explain why I had to take something away/put her down/etc, and redirect her to something else. I know when I am more tired, it's harder to deal with, and she does it more, probably bc I am more likely to just "give in" than when I am more with it. There's a lot of whining these days, as E has her next set of molars coming in (the (ha ha) "2 year" ones) and they make the other teething Nights of Hell look like a cakewalk. Boo for us.

On the positive side, language explosion over here-she is picking up all kinds of new words, and _using_them-wow! Although sometimes I wish she weren't so communicative (When she farts, she says "toot toot!" Nice. Thanks, DH.) And, okay, this is wierd, but she knows shapes. Well, triangle, square, and circle, anyway: if you ask her to point to "x", she does. (Or is this normal and I'm just easily impressed???) I think she will be smarter at 2 than I ever was. She does some pretty funny things too: yesterday she got a baby bottle (which we never use, someone gave them to us) out of the cupboard, unscrewed it, poured her bowl of chickpeas in it, screwed the top back on, and then came over to where I was making dinner and pantomimed drinking out of the bottle, laughing away, saying "Oh no!". WTH???!
Anyway, I have to go clean the house bc my mom is coming in tonight for a week-long visit, and her standards are much higher than mine! Take care, have a good week!


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## jillmamma (Apr 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mags* 
I'm beginning to feel as if he is only whiny when he is around me.







: Are any of you in the same boat? If so, have you figured out any things to decrease the whining? I mean how do you reason with a 15 mo old? Jonah's very demanding, and I already spend much more time and energy on him compared to my older son (which I feel bad about, and luckily he is pretty mellow), when he goes on his whine and scream fests, I just feel like pulling my hair out and seriously my ears are ringing after he screams, I think I am going deaf. I honestly am kind of afraid of what he is going to be like as he gets older, since he is already so willful at such a young age.

Sometimes we do here too. Not so much the whininess, as the high pitched LOUD screeches if she is frustrated with something. Part of that is not having the words to express (though it is starting to get better as she is learning new words almost every day!), part of it is emotional immaturity. As far as how I handle it, I try to empathize with her, and express what she is feeling and why. Like, "oh, are you stuck?", or "I bet you are hungry", or "I know you are tired", and try to address the cause of it if possible (if she is demanding out of the highchair in a restaurant, she may have to stay in a bit longer till someone is done eating and she can sit on a lap). As to him acting up more around you, that could be just that he is SO attached and comfortable around mom, he feels he can totally be himself and not hold back around you. I have noticed Michelle gets like that more around me too.

I had the in-laws here this past weekend, and had my kids spoiled with lots of love and new clothes ("Gree" loves to shop!). We celebrated my older son's birthday (they won't be here for his actual birthday), and he got new sheets/quilt for his bed in trains from them.

How often are your little ones waking at night nowadays? Michelle is getting up between 1 and 3 times lately. I think it is due to teething (she has 3 molars broken through, and 1 still to come in), being sick with a cold the last two weeks, and being just so BUSY during the day that she does not want to stop for long to eat, so she makes up for it at night. She and her brother go to bed between 8 and 9 (they share a room), and she is up for the day at around 7 or 8. She takes one nap now of about 2-3 hours in the middle of the day. Are your kids still taking more than one nap or down to one now?


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## absinthe (Mar 16, 2004)

wow, I haven't checked in with you guys in a while now, although I always read the threads. Gareth is big and beautiful and full of mischief lately. Daddy has taken to calling him coyote or loki since he has become such a trickster.
We went trekking through the national forest this weekend and brought home a beautiful tree. The forest service designates an area that needs thinning to reduce fire risk and for $10.00 dollars you can choose a tree. I think the one we brought home is about 12 feet. Little guys eyes have been as big as saucers since we set it up. We left all our crystal and glass ornaments in storage for now and are using fabric, and plastic, and homemade salt dough ones this year. Just seems safer.
For those who celebrate some kind of holiday, what gifts are you giving your little ones? We got a couple of puzzles, some wooden cars, a wooden push toy w/ a handle and a really neat waldorf doll that looks a little like him. Lately when he sees a doll he gets all excited so i hope he likes it and that it holds up to his "loving" it.
Gareth walks, runs, climbs, jumps andwrestles with his sister, but he isn't talking much. He only uses 5 words and about three signs, and he only resorts to signing when pointing and grunting fail. His comprehension seems excellent and he can follow multi-step directions, but I still worry.
Other than that all is well, just gearing up for the holiday pandemonium. Congratulations nonny! I must admit to a little new baby envy.


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

We seem to have two threads this month, and I missed them both!

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=569847


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *wsgrl84* 
Happy December Mamas! I think it's about time for me to start a thread this month! The holidays are truly my favorite time of the year!

Wow another year's coming to an end and our little toddler are growing up faster as ever.

Let me start off the season right by announcing that I officially have another bun in the oven! I'm PREGNANT!





















And I am hoping for a







this time! *fingers crossed*

Christmas decorations, mistletoes, carols, christmas lights on trees and houses, snow falling outside....

yes mamas, I do believe this is the most wonderful time of the year!









And THEN I read the thread









Congratulations Nonny!!! Wonderful news, woohoo!!!


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## mags (May 4, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *jillmamma* 
Sometimes we do here too. Not so much the whininess, as the high pitched LOUD screeches if she is frustrated with something. Part of that is not having the words to express (though it is starting to get better as she is learning new words almost every day!), part of it is emotional immaturity. As far as how I handle it, I try to empathize with her, and express what she is feeling and why. Like, "oh, are you stuck?", or "I bet you are hungry", or "I know you are tired", and try to address the cause of it if possible (if she is demanding out of the highchair in a restaurant, she may have to stay in a bit longer till someone is done eating and she can sit on a lap). As to him acting up more around you, that could be just that he is SO attached and comfortable around mom, he feels he can totally be himself and not hold back around you. I have noticed Michelle gets like that more around me too.

I had the in-laws here this past weekend, and had my kids spoiled with lots of love and new clothes ("Gree" loves to shop!). We celebrated my older son's birthday (they won't be here for his actual birthday), and he got new sheets/quilt for his bed in trains from them.

How often are your little ones waking at night nowadays? Michelle is getting up between 1 and 3 times lately. I think it is due to teething (she has 3 molars broken through, and 1 still to come in), being sick with a cold the last two weeks, and being just so BUSY during the day that she does not want to stop for long to eat, so she makes up for it at night. She and her brother go to bed between 8 and 9 (they share a room), and she is up for the day at around 7 or 8. She takes one nap now of about 2-3 hours in the middle of the day. Are your kids still taking more than one nap or down to one now?

Thanks for the advice ladies! I guess I am not used to such a vocal toddler. My oldest son was a late talker, and even now is relatively mellow and not prone to the freak outs that jonah has. So, this is all new to me, even as a second time parent. Guess I got lucky with my oldest one.... although after having jonah my DH says we cannot have anymore babies, b/c he doesn't want to deal with another baby with a strong personality again.







I think if he knew we'd have another mellow baby again, he'd be gung ho about having another one.

Jill-

To answer your question about night sleeping, knock on wood, the past three nights jonah has been doing wonderfully. We do not co-sleep, mainly b/c we tried it before and it did not work for baby or us. We have always struggled with jonah's sleep, he has never napped well and never slept well at night (I swear he was the only newborn I know who DIDN'Tsleep... I always see these newborns soundly asleep in their carseats everywhere I go, and jonah was always the one that had to be carried and was crying all of the time), frequent wakings and resisting sleep although he is obviously tired (and yes, we tried putting him down before he was tired and that didn't work either). The past two months were hell. He has been on a teething rampage, was cutting about 8 teeth all at once and wouldn't eat well (but at least nursing lots) or sleep well. I *think* the massive teething has finally slowed down. His appetite is back and he actually goes tries to climb INTO his crib at bedtime now!!!! WOW! My oldest son always loved to go to bed, and would try to climb into his crib, so I really did not expect jonah to do this too, since he just has always hated going to sleep. It's so cute now that something finally, "clicked" and he now realizes that bedtime is not a bad thing and he seems to look forward to it. I've noticed in the past few days that he is also much more pleasant to be around during the daytime, and I believe it is b/c he is FINALLY starting to sleep well. He actually slept all the way through 2 nights in a row, and last night he woke up once at 4am, and then slept in until 8am! It was so great! I guess I've been spoiled, b/c my oldest was sleeping through the night by the time he was 10 mo old and I was beginning to wonder if jonah would every learn how to sleep through the night. I'm hoping that this is not all some fluke and he'll be up all of the time and fighting sleep again. Crossing my fingers and I feel for any mama out there that has a baby who just doesn't want to sleep. Jonah takes one nap a day, BUT I have noticed that sometimes he wants to take that nap super early (10:30-11am), compared to when it usually is (around 1pm). So, I just kind of go with the flow. Unfortunately, that means that instead of me having some time to nap while both kids nap (when I coordinate their naps), or do some email, that doesn't happen as often. Today, it happened and both kids napped well, and I did too, it was soooo nice and no cranky kids at bedtime to deal with!

Oh, and if you haven't tried the hylands teething tablets, get them! DH and I swear by them!


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Well, this seems to be the thread that's gaining momentum. I posted this on the other December thread:

"Hi guys...I'm so glad we're still keeping a monthly thread!

We went on a cruise over Thanksgiving (my parents treated my entire extended family). It was good to spend time with my nieces and nephews, two of whom are off at college now, and it was nice to have DH around for four days straight. (Actually SIX days, since he took off the day before and after.)

But I have to say, I don't get the allure of a cruise. I hated the motion (I didn't get seasick, but it just felt wrong) and there's not much to do if you can't sit around by the pool and drink (like I may have pre-Henry), don't gamble, and don't like shopping. Our day in the Bahamas was great, though -- gorgeous weather and just fun to be somewhere different.

And Henry did GREAT. He was such a fabulous traveler -- so happy and content to be out and about. Everyone on the cruise (employees and fellow passengers) was so friendly to him, which was just great to see. He just fell asleep whenever and however he needed to, and we all went to bed together every night just fine. I was glad to get home, though. Not a very relaxing vacation!

We're currently looking at this house:

http://www.standardres.com/Listings/4924_NIdelwood.htm and

http://www.brewcityfsbo.com/details.asp?ID=1662

It's priced way too high ($260,000 to $270,000 would be more reasonable) and the owner seems a little bull-headed about the price. It's been on the market for three months now and the guy isn't even living there anymore, but he says if it doesn't sell he's going to remodel the kitchen and put it back on the market for over $300,000. We're hoping our realtor can talk some sense into him.

My friend in that area already hooked me up via e-mail with two women who live on the block. They have at least one block party every summer, they have a book club for women on the block, and there are many kids ranging in age from 2-16. It's three blocks from the park with the playground I love and walking distance to Lake Michigan, a shopping district, and the library. Plus it's 1 1/2 blocks in from a main road (which leads to the a freeway on-ramp about a mile away).

The house itself is less charming than some of the others we've pursued. I grew up in a late 1960's colonial and just really dislike that style, but I'm coming around. This house was built in the 1930's, so it has more charm and potential than the one I grew up in. The kitchen and bathrooms need remodeling and I'd tear up the carpet (wood floors underneath) and paint everything really earthy/jewely colors. On the plus side, it has:

* a two-and-a-half car garage (in an area where a one-car is common)
* a large master bedroom (big enough for our two dressers, and our co-sleeping set-up)
* a semi-finished rec room and a big enough basement to finish off someday
* a living room AND a family room
* a foyer so you don't walk right into the living room from the front door
* a driveway instead of an alley entrance
* two fireplaces, though the second one isn't that nice
* newer windows
* new furnace and central air
* newer roof
* glass block windows in the basement
* decent storage space

I would love to tear out the formal-looking landscaping in the front yard and have a wildflower or country-cottage-type garden to sort of soften things up. And maybe take down those shutters (I have this thing against shutters!) and put up some awnings, since the front faces west and that afternoon sun can be brutal in summer.

Anyway, we're probably going to put a bid in next week. If the guy doesn't budge on price we'll be out of luck, but we're okay with that."

Update -- we put an offer in on the house tonight, and the guy seemed pretty agreeable with everything. Our realtor said he seemed like a really nice, reasonable guy, and he was happy to hear it would be our last house and the one we raise Henry in. So we may have a house! The other good thing is that we put in a home sale contingency, so we have an out (if we want it) if our house doesn't sell, and we made the closing date mid-February so we're giving ourselves some time. (In this market no home-sale contingencies and fast closing dates are the norm.)

Nonny! Yay! That is so awesome. May you have a happy, easy, and healthy pregnancy.









Eastkygal, how rough to be without your dh. I hope the work is done soon!


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

Happy December August mamas!

First and foremost, Nonny, girl, congratulations! I hope you continue to feel great and that your dream of having a little girl comes true. Mothering a girl is so special and wonderful!

What a busy time for us here - both house and car shopping and getting ready for Christmas!







: Here is the house we're looking at on Wednesday. Nice view, huh? http://www.alternativeproperties.com...er_vistas.html

New Mama, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you.

Annabelle is doing great. Still no words besides "yes" and "fish" and some expressions if you ask like "thank you", "I love you" (that one she says spontaneously) and "I did it!". Lots of signing, though.

milk
potty
music
cat
dog
bird
apple
food
water
done
more
please
thank you
play
dance
help
again - she can says this too, but always with the sign

wow, that's a lot! I've noticed more whining but only around other kids as it's difficult for her to communicate with them - she can't talk and they don't understand her signs. Transitions are becoming harder too I notice.

Still going strong with EC. I'm now thinking of it more as potty learning. She's averaging about one or two wet undies a day (ALWAYS poos in the potty) and wears undies for her nap. She pees like a racehorse at night, though. Never thought I'd say this, but thank goodness for sposies.







:

She is super active and still waking two or three times a night to eat. My mom (the mother of nine) was here for Thanksgiving and told me she'd never met a more active child!







: No wonder I'm soooooo







:.

I'm sewing a ton of stuff for the holidays - trying to keep within a reasonable budget - and my evenings are pretty much taken up with that. I'm making A a Waldorf-style doll and some cloth balls. L is getting three pairs of jammie pants and G is getting some laundry bags. I'm also making a Steiner doll and a sling for my bf's kiddos. It's so fun to sew. Plus, I'm still knitting A's blanket that I started when I was pg with her. I joke that it's her high school graduation present.


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## CarenSwan (Sep 29, 2005)

New Mama, that's so exciting about the house! We dream about owning our own place, but it'll be a while yet. It sounds like that house is in a really great location for you, and it would be great to have other families in the neighborhood.

We're just getting started on molars here, so wish us luck! Poor little Clara has been soooo clingy and snuggly lately! I hope that she's feeling better in a few weeks so that she's up for all the traveling we'll do over Christmas.

I'm so excited, I'm ordering her an Elves & Angels kitchen set from Nova Naturals! My folks and sister are all chipping in because it's $$$ but I think that Clara will love it and get a lot of great use out of it! That's pretty much all she's getting from us, though I'm going to order some stockmar block crayons and a couple little things. I wanted to get her a waldorf doll, but that will have to wait until her birthday.


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## CarenSwan (Sep 29, 2005)

Kate, that's awsome about your house, too! It's so beautiful!


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Wow, Kate, I'm drooling over the kitchen and the yard. The view ain't bad, either! Keep us posted.

Are we nuts or what to be house hunting during the holidays with active toddlers?







:


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

I too posted on the other thread: Here it is:

"Happy December!
Today we began our homemade activity advent calendar. I'm hoping to make this a tradition every year. I decided to make my own, so as to avoid the candy ones. Plus, I liked the idea of doing a christmas activity together everyday (we will do activites like take food to the food bank, make a handprint wreath, etc). So today we hung the lights in the windows and outside. It's going to be a fun month.

We too put up our tree last weekend and it has managed to stay up, but I fear the worst for the ornaments. C discovered yesterday (while I was making lunch) that if you take two glass ball ornaments and bang them together, you get two broken glass ornaments.














: Um, what was I thinking putting the tree up? This is a tradition for us to put it up the weekend after T day, but C is into stuff much more than his sis was at the same age. I should have known better. Oh, well. Time to do some rearranging!"

CONGRATULATIONS Nonny!!! That is fantastic news! Made me smile when I read that announcement.







: Its been a lot of fun having 2 kids. I know you'll enjoy it!

*About Molars*:
Is your toddler getting or has gotten their 2 yr. old molars? If so, do they also have the teeth between the molar and first 2 teeth in the front?

Cheyne doesn't; but I'm pretty sure that his molars are errupting. Poor guy is tired and cranky lately.

~All the best to you all this week~ A


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *K's Mom!* 

*About Molars*:
Is your toddler getting or has gotten their 2 yr. old molars? If so, do they also have the teeth between the molar and first 2 teeth in the front?

Cheyne doesn't; but I'm pretty sure that his molars are errupting. Poor guy is tired and cranky lately.

E has all her teeth, including the canines, and is working on the "2 year" (ha ha HA) molars. These have been the worst by far...last night was another no-sleep night for us, even with drugs and hugs!! Ugh. Hopefully she's so exhausted tonight that she just sleeps.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Just popping in to say hi!

No molars for DS, he actually haven't popped any teeth out yet for awhile, but the drooling is still there, who knows what his teeth are doing.

He went in for his 15 month appointment past weekend, and his weight is a little low this time (25th percentile







) The doc said it's probably because he's so active during the day.

On a totally random topic, the ped found out that he has hernia in his balls! Of all things














:..I had to ask him to describe the problem in pictures and he did pretty good job. So we went in to the pediatric surgeon and scheduled a surgery day for him in 2 weeks. My poor boy! Apparently this is very common in boys, the surgeon does 5-10 surgeries every Tuesday!

pregnancy update: I am having burst of energy during the day now, last night I rearranged the whole room and brought in the crib. My DH thought I was crazy







: who can blame him ...


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Oo forgot to mention...I







the pictures of the houses!! Looks soooo cozy! Good luck with the house searching and moving!







:


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## Aeriane (Apr 4, 2005)




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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Just a quick note to say Hi.

Griffin turned 9 on Nov. 22 and a week later received his yellow belt in karate. Tonight, Tova took her first real, unassisted steps (she's been walking/running for weeks holding onto one of our fingers). So, it's been an exciting time in our household. Dave is in the groove at his new job -- it's very busy but everyone is very nice and things seem to be going well. I'm holding down the fort as best I can and actually feel a bit better the past couple of days. Hopefully it's a sign of things to come.

Please check out our latest pics at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/

Cheers for now ...


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## mommy-X-2 (Oct 23, 2006)

So I havent been here in a while. Railee is a month behind on her checkups becuase she was sick and then we had insurance trouble. So she goes in for her 15 month at almost 16 1/2 mo. She still only has 5 teeth and is finally getting hair but its so thin!

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c4.../Railee024.jpg

So everyday in the shower as I wash her I sing...wash wash washing the baby. Well the other day she got in the tub by herself and was pretending to wash the walls. So we got her her own loofa. Well this morning in the shower she had her loofa and pretended to put soap on it and then washed herslef while she sang....wa wa wa bebe!







I laughed so hard.


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

About molars:
Andrya,
Emmett only has 6 teeth, the top four and bottom two and he pushed a molar through the night before last. He is not getting his teeth in the usual order, but I think it is all good. DS1 got the first eight, the canines and then the molars. Emmett is doing it differently!

Why do you think someone is deleting your messages Kitty? I saw the last one fine.

- Kerri


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *K's Mom!* 

*About Molars*:
Is your toddler getting or has gotten their 2 yr. old molars? If so, do they also have the teeth between the molar and first 2 teeth in the front?


we've got two on top, two on the bottom, 4 molars, and none inbetween.

i got to assist at a birth the other day (monday into tues). wow!!! very amazing. it was in the hospital, it lasted 29 hours, and it was sooo beautiful! at 25 hours in (11:00pm) the doctor recommended pitocin or c-section (she had been at 5cm for 5 hours or more). she said no and continued going strong. she also opted out of having her water broken (all the ladies present were recommending this as an alternative option to move things along). at 1:00am she was still 5cm and requested a pain killer. they gave her something (started with an "n") that gave her some relief for one hour. she was able to take a nap. the doctor and nurse were monitoring from the hallway (external) and said that she had stalled. it didn't appear that she was contracting at all while she slept. they were ready to see what she wanted her next step to be at 2 when she woke up. they checked her and she was 9cm! she went to the bathroom and came out ready to push. she went through transition in her sleep, while the medical team thought she was stalled! alagna dolores was born at 4:09, healthy and strong! mama knows best!


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

LOVE the new photos, mamas - thanks! we so enjoy looking at them. laurel gets very excited to see the adorable babes.
thought we'd add some freshies...
laurel kickin' it in november
btw - the cd player is definately the greatest new toy. my mama sent it with the new jack johnson curious george cd. we have been rockin' out non-stop! laurel is all about singing along with the microphone and gettin' her little groove on!


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## jillmamma (Apr 11, 2005)

New Mama, how exciting on the house!

As far as molars, Michelle has all 8 front teeth, and 3 of her first year molars, no canines yet.

Michelle is getting a big explosion of words lately. One of her newest is "stuck". I had my in-laws visiting last weekend, and normally Michelle goes right to sleep when I put her in the pack n play for a nap, but with all the commotion, she did not want to sleep, so she was standing in there saying "stuck, stuck".







We got her up, and she finally went to sleep a hour or two later.

Sad news here though...my grandpa passed away day before yesterday.







He was 98 years old though, and got pneumonia, which pretty much was the thing that got him. So he got to live a long wonderful life, and is now in heaven with my grandma who died 2 years ago. My mom got to go to see him (her dad). She told me she prayed for my grandma to come and take him peacefully to heaven, and his last words to her were "Your mother is here." I find that pretty special and amazing.


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

Good to know that others mouths are developing at their own speed as well. I was just wondering because my SIL never got her lower canine teeth. She just has a gap there.

Jeremy~ Laurel looks like her mama IMO!

Jill- I'm sorry for your loss. It's hard to lose a grandparent at any age. Thanks for sharing that special story with us. That's neat.







:
The stuck, stuck thing cracked me up!

Railee has some beautiful eyes. She's a real sweet heart!

I had posted on the other Dec. thread that if any of you had older DC that want to write letters to Santa, you could send them to me. I live in North Pole after all. (I'm not joking, I really do live here) However, if you wanted your kid to have a reply can you send it with your dcs letter. Thanks. PM me for my address. The return letters would have the North Pole postmark.

Cheyne has learned how to wash his own hands and apply lotion. It's quite cute.

Glad youre feeling well Nonny!


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

Heeelllloooooo. . .(Echo, Echo, Echo, Echo) Where have you all gone?







This thread has gone quiet after 16 mos. Everyone must be busy prepping for the holidays.

Emily-- How's that sweet family of four of yours doing? How's big bro. doing?

Nonny- Have you told your family yet, or were you going to do it for Christmas/ Solstice (or on the holiday that your family celebrates)?

Is anyone going anywhere fancy for the holidays?

I hope everyone is well. love, A


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

We had a tummy bug sweep through our house this past week - we were too busy cleaning up bodily fluids to post









I think you're right about the holidays, too - beyond the tummy bug, we've been trying to get together our gifts for family, and as they're all handmade, that's been proving to be quite a feat. I'm making my Mama a fleece coat to replace her old one. We're doing handprint oraments and framed photos and other such grandparent gifts.

We're also decluttering, packing and inventorying a great deal of our stuff, since we're moving in March.

I'm reading, I just get very little time to post these days - even my blog feels sadly neglected. Kiernen is my little sweet patoot - I want to post more, but I must away. Will update more soon!


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

heyhey! I'm still here......lurking.....nothing really too special here

DS has been trying to talk sooooooo much lately, it's wonderful to hear him try so hard. Some words I said maybe twice to him and he remembers so fast! Favorite words now are "bus, wheel, flower, juice". Oh and he LOVES little cars and trains, he plays with them all day!

I've been tired one day, fine the next, feeling nausous one day and fine the next. Couple of days ago, I literally went through 8 different mood swings all in ONE day!







And yes I am definitely showing a bump now, I'm showing one way earlier than the last pregnancy! So I am feeling more pains on my lower back at night because of the weight. Not so fun part..









And yes I did tell everyone! About the same time I told everyone here.. I certainly can't hide this kind of wonderful news.

By the way...everyone go see "The Holiday" with Cameron Diaz and Jack Black and the other guy I forgot the name of. Just wonderful movie in time for the holidays!

chasmyn: I read your blog about the stomach bug, I'm glad you guys are feeling better now!!

take care everyone and stay warm!


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

I'm here, too!









I lurk nearly every day to see how you all are doing -- but until both kidlets are sleeping at night, it's been a full 18-24 hour day for me and I usually go to bed... I miss posting, but I miss sleep, too!









We're good here. Adam is, plainly, busy. He just doesn't stop moving, and I am not quite sure if that's a new thing...if I'm just noticing it more because I am nursing and caring for Sarah a lot...or if it's pronounced since we're stuck indoors a lot these days. I stood back and watched today, and he honestly did not stop moving all day.

Sarah is lovely, and getting so big. I still haven't posted pics of her yet - I promise I will soon - she's a crazy little nurse monster. Nighttime is per usual for a newborn, but she'll occasionally get these 3 hour stretches a few times a week that make me gape in awe...it took Adam MONTHS to get a 3 hour stretch. Although I am honestly amazed on that front -- when Sarah was 2 weeks old, Adam started "sleeping through the night" -- with 0-1 nightwakings in 11 hours. The last 2 nights he hasn't woken up at all. This from a kid whose nighttime record is 11 nightwakings in 11 hours. I don't know whether it will continue, but I'm enjoying each hour he sleeps!

I'm glad you are all well - I've read all of the posts, and I'm so thrilled everyone's babes are happy and healthy (except for stomach bugs! sorry, chasmyn!) and wonderful - I love the pictures (Laurel is SO cool) and stories. I think of you guys lots and am going to try to get my act together to post more these days...but WOW are these two busy little guys!! Hopefully one of these days I'll just be sailing through the day like it's nothing, but these days I am setting goals....like showered by 10am....

Love to all!


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

I've been more busy since Thanksgiving for sure. We sure can't lose this thread after all we've been through together, though!!!

Emily...daring to attempt to shower before 10 am??? You are either delirious from milk production or a superpowered amazon woman!!! I feel so incredibly lucky if I get a shower at all!!! Glad to hear that all is well even though you certainly have your hands full. No pressure, of course, BUT I WANT TO SEE PICTURES OF MISS SARAH!!!!!!!!!









New video of Owen

Things are well here but super busy. Owen is doing lots of cute new things. These babies are just such a privilege to be around, huh????

I hope you're all enjoying this season and not feeling stressed!

Gotta go get some sleep, glorious sleep!!!

Love,
Adrienne


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Hey all!
I have been busy too prepping for the holidays, etc. We too had the nasty stomach bug in our house. Now Emmett has a cold with a hoarse voice. He sounds like a 50 yo smoker!
We made some homemade gifts too- playsilks for the kids, ornaments with handprints , pictures, magnets, etc. Fun
I have been cooking a lot with DS 1 too. He loves it, especially sampling the wares after the cooking.
We are keeping the holidays pretty simple with gifts and all, but I have enjoyed picking out a couple of things for the boys. DS1 is getting a play castle complete with knights and a dragon. Emmett is getting some cars, books, etc. He LOVES books right now. He is obsessed. I think I read Miss Spider's Tea Party like 20 times yesterday. I love it

More later.
- Kerri


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## mtnsunshinemama (Sep 21, 2004)

Hi ladies! I'm still here too, albeit busy, busy, busy! I don't think I checked in all of November but not because I'm not extremely thankful for my sweetest boys and all that we have!

Our rich blessings were put in to vivid contrast last month with a visit to my old college friend in Montana, and her subsequent death from brain cancer a couple of weeks ago. A mama of 5 kids ages 3- 14, it is a heartbreaking story and really puts things into perspective!! Part of her story is here;
http://www.whitefishpilot.com/articl...ies/obit05.txt
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/articl...ews/news01.prt
Please send good thoughts and energy to her 5 babies!

I have been reading along, it just seems I never time to post, let alone comment on all the goings on in the thread!!

Today is no exception, so this'll be quick, before my sweeties wake up! We too, are all recovering from an extended 'bout of the crud! (August's started with a 103 degree fever for 2 days and had us so worried!) He had the same voice as Emmett, poor things! His latest pics are of him and his sick bed, still managing a smile! He was so sad, (molars and thrush at the same time) and needed a distraction so we even let him watch sesame street, his first TV! He's become such a ham for the camera!

http://www.soulshinefamily.smugmug.com/gallery/1973264

Owen's (very adorable!) video prompted me to put up August's latest;






He loves music and singing! And let's not forget talking!! OMG! The kid is non-stop! He has some 70+ words and keeps asking for more! His latest? Car, Belbow (elbow), Nake (snake), Piggy, Bear, Drink and everybody's names, Mimi, Pa, Joe, Nick...much to the delight of the family! Signing too, still! More, Book, Sleepy, eat, music, bath - get the most usage~
He is a book fiend too! His first 2 word sentence was- "More books?"

Still not walking! He's taken 1-3 steps between things, but nothing more! He's in no hurry, I guess! We're thinking he may start in Mexico!

Yes , we're going to Mexico tomorrow!!! We're sooo excited! We'll be staying here for a week!
http://www.mayatankah.com/index.php

Going with great friends, we also paid for part of their trip so they'll watch August for us a couple of hours a day!! Yippee! I've gotta go get packing!!

Congrats to you Nonny, very exciting!!! Hope you manage the holidays without being too sick and tired!

With AF back, we decided to wait till A is 2 before TTC one more!

Best on the house, New Mama!
I love seeing the pics of all your sweet babes! Still waiting to see little Sarah!
Loved seeing Laurel rockin'- I like the idea of a CD player for A. He's always trying to reach ours!

Okay mamas, sorry about the sickies! We can empathize!
Stay well everyone else and hopefully calm and centered during the holiday buzz! I'll have a margarita and a massage and do some yoga on the beach for the collective WE!


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Hi! can I join in too? I have 15 month old twins - a boy and a girl. Are you supposed to have a 15 mo check up?

We still are not sleeping at night. My little girl , Tehila, has been getting her molars and when one is coming through it is absolute torture for all of us. Gedalya , my little boy, has one molar through (Tehila has 3). When Tehila is not teething then she seems to sleep okay, but Gedalya is up nursing the whole night through.

Gedalya asks questions all day long - including in the middle of nursing: what's that, what's this. He also says a few other words -most notably hello. Tehila says hello and dog, but that's about it for her.

What do you feed your babies? I need new ideas.

About me: I'm a SAHM to 5 kids - all boys and one girl and stay busy mostly by cleaning my house or avoiding cleaning my house.


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## mtnsunshinemama (Sep 21, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18* 
Hi! can I join in too? I have 15 month old twins - a boy and a girl. Are you supposed to have a 15 mo check up?

We still are not sleeping at night. My little girl , Tehila, has been getting her molars and when one is coming through it is absolute torture for all of us. Gedalya , my little boy, has one molar through (Tehila has 3). When Tehila is not teething then she seems to sleep okay, but Gedalya is up nursing the whole night through.

Gedalya asks questions all day long - including in the middle of nursing: what's that, what's this. He also says a few other words -most notably hello. Tehila says hello and dog, but that's about it for her.

What do you feed your babies? I need new ideas.

About me: I'm a SAHM to 5 kids - all boys and one girl and stay busy mostly by cleaning my house or avoiding cleaning my house.

Welcome Rivka!
Just a quick note to say that many of us on Mothering don't do regular well-baby visits, aren't on the "regular" vaccine schedule and instead take our babes in when they need to be seen even though I think 15 months IS a recommended age.

Also, new favorite in the food department is freeze-dried strawberries from Trader Joes, oh and Annie's cheddar bunnies!


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Nice to see this thread active again!
Like many of you, we've been busy with holiday prep-my mom was visiting last week, so we got our tree, decorated it, make some new ornaments, etc. E is in love with the tree, and points to it saying "tee!" at least 5 times a day. Unfortunately, she also likes breaking the ornaments (wood and fixable, but still...). We spent yesterday doing our cards (late as usual) and I made mini-scrapbooks of E for the grandparents/great grandparents that can be mailed in a letter (E actually has more great-grandparents than grandparents, wierd eh?), and we made candy: sponge toffee coverd in chocolate, peppermint bark, nut brittle, panocha and bonfire toffee (treacle toffee). I think my veins are now coursing with a 60% sugar solution. I have a few things left to get/do, but am feeling really on top of xmas this year-not a usual thing! We tried taking E to see Santa last week, but she freaked out. She is not scared of many things, but she *hates* white beards. When DH is shaving, she is totally spooked by it, and hides from him, and she is wary of him for a few minutes after he's done...so I should have known Santa wouldn't be a hit! It was kind of funny (not her crying, obviously) but "Santa" was like "Uh oh, she's looking back at me, Mom, get her attention back to you, quick, oh this isn't going to be good..." It must be tough making kids cry all the time.

*Welcome Rivka!*
I think 15 mos is a usual time for appoitments. Although we aren't vaxxing, we have been doing the "normal" appointments (we have one at the end of January) as E has eczema and some potential allergies (we have a family history), so my doc wants to check in on her regularly.

We are dealing with major sep. anxiety, and serious mama-attachment, so it has been a long week of poor sleeping and sore backs from carrying E all the time. I really, really really hope this is a short phase...if any of you have tips/experience with this, please share!

E started sitting in a booster on a normal chair this week (at least for non-messy meals), and she is so pleased with herself. She thinks it's hilarious sitting with us. Mealtimes are so much more fun! She is eating more grown up food-and even likes pasta and things mixed up, though she still likes eating one thing at a time (ie. will pick out all the chick peas, then move onto the broccoli, etc etc). I have a good bank of meals for b-fast and dinner, but need inspiraiton for lunches. Big hits lately have been fruit smoothies (banana, soy milk, mango, berries, rice protein-these always elicit "mo meeeee?" (translation, "more, pleeeease?!"), whole grain flax waffles, grilled tofu, marinated in Bragg's, scrambled egg yolks, and lentil soup (with spinach, carrot, onion, garlic, carrot, potato and zucchini).

Do any of your kids have funny little nursing rituals? E started singing "boob-booob-boooooob-boooob" halfway through nursing, in sort of a scale, then smiling and going back to nursing. Cute. I like to think of it as sort of a "thanks, mom".


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

*


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## henhao (Dec 17, 2004)

Hey all!

Mtsunshine -- Sorry to hear of your friend. How heartbreaking...

Nonny -- Congratulations on the new life inside you!

My new favorite icons:







and









We're doing well here.

She has started RUNNING.







: Yipes.

When she falls, we say "good catch' and she gets right back up without a fuss.

What else? OH, we have the start of potty learning. She now tells us "pee pee" sometimes when she needs to go. Today we were at a party and I took her into the bathroom with me. She got all fussy and pointed at the toilet, so I put her on it first and she went!! I wasn't even expecting that! I've been saved from washing THREE diapers today because of her good use of the toilet. YAY!

I'm up to my eyeballs in projects. I want to finish knitting a bag I started last spring. When it got hot, I could not stand the idea of touching wool so I put it on the back burner. And then my ol' mommy brain lost a skein of yarn, which I kept expecting to find somewhere weird like the freezer and it never showed up even after 7 months...so I am FINALLY going to shell out the whole $7 to buy a new one. I'm sure I'll find the old one after I order the new.

I am also starting some web sites in the hopes that one day I can work on my web biz from home and have more flexibility with my schedule AND be able to work no matter where we live.

I have had MISERABLE skin rashes. I stopped eating wheat, dairy, etc etc etc until I was bascially eating certain grains and veggies. I was so hungry. It took a month, but I got the rashes under control with diet and am trying to keep it under control. When I accidently ate some sugar in a Japanese dish, I got the rash all over again. Urgh! The rash is still not 100% gone, but it's better. I am looking on the bright side and feeling blessed that I am being forced to eat healthier, which will be better for my overall health in the long run.

Wow, I am SO far behind on posts. I'll go back and read some more of them soon.

Love to all of you and WELCOME to the new people.


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Somewhere bck in the recesses of my mind is the list of when to take my kids to the dr. I guess I'll need to make a 15 mo. appointment - I'm sure the ped will be thrilled when she finds out that I still haven't done the bloodwork for their 9 mo. checkups! They've just made it so difficult for me, that I really don't want to expend the effort. I have to use the lab across the street and they don't want to have more children than parents which means I have to take dh or a friend and that's just not happening - and what if I have my other kids with me? so... no bloodwork - hopefully we don't have lead problems. The bigger issue is that Gedalya was majorly anemic earlier this year and had to spend time in the e.r. - I don't know why our insurance company has to be a pain and insist on this lab instead of in the office.

So, speaking of allergies, when would you introduce dairy? My 8 yr old gets eczema and ear infections at the slightest drop of dairy - therefore, I'm leery to introduce dairy to the babies. Plus, I think that Gedalya may be sensitive, because he's gotten ear infections after I've eaten dairy - I have had no dairy since June and I neeeeeeeeeeeeeeed pizza really badly. I don't think that Tehila is allergic, but now am cautious. I'd kind of like to give her dairy because I just don't know what to feed them. We've been doing baby food and some people food, but mostly they just throw the people food. Gedalya will eat pears, but Tehila won't touch anything wet.


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## adoremybabe (Jun 8, 2006)

Hello all, I haven't posted in forever. I've been too busy posting on the May 2007 Due Date Club! My DS William has been having some dirty diaper issues and I am hoping that someone might be able to start me in the right direction. For the past few weeks his BM's have been messier and stinkier than ever. Last night one even have mucous in it. Sorry TMI. I think it has something to do with his diet. SO far I have decided to cut out apples and oranges altogether for at least 2 weeks. William hardly gets any dairy ( can't stand milk ) so I'm not sure that that is the problem. He usually eats a banana everyday. I know that I have to start him on a vitamin because he only nurses a few times a day and there isn't very much there to drink to begin with. Any reccomendations? I feel like I should really bland up his diet for a while to see if things change. Unfortunately, I am preggos and my own diet is still underconstruction looking to healthier foods. I hate feeling sick and feeling like the most unhealthy food in the house will taste the best. Hopefully someone here might be able to offer some advice!

Thanks - Celia


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *adoremybabe* 
Hello all, I haven't posted in forever. I've been too busy posting on the May 2007 Due Date Club! My DS William has been having some dirty diaper issues and I am hoping that someone might be able to start me in the right direction. For the past few weeks his BM's have been messier and stinkier than ever. Last night one even have mucous in it. Sorry TMI. I think it has something to do with his diet. SO far I have decided to cut out apples and oranges altogether for at least 2 weeks. William hardly gets any dairy ( can't stand milk ) so I'm not sure that that is the problem. He usually eats a banana everyday. I know that I have to start him on a vitamin because he only nurses a few times a day and there isn't very much there to drink to begin with. Any reccomendations? I feel like I should really bland up his diet for a while to see if things change. Unfortunately, I am preggos and my own diet is still underconstruction looking to healthier foods. I hate feeling sick and feeling like the most unhealthy food in the house will taste the best. Hopefully someone here might be able to offer some advice!

Thanks - Celia

It sounds like his gut flora is way out of whack. If you post the question in the Healing the Gut Tribe in health and healing. I'm sure the Mamas there will have some good advice.


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Celia-we have had the same issue! We had a frustrating experience with a bowel specialist (another story), but he made a few dietary recommendations that made sense, and when we stick to them, DD has proper stools again, not crazy grody blowouts. FWIW, here's what he told me:
-LOTS of water-I didn't realize DD wasn't getting enough
-Limited or no dairy (which we do anyway bc of DD's eczema)
-No bananas, sweet potatoes, carrots, or other binding foods
-High fibre diet
-at least 2 servings of green veggies a day
-Oils and fats to keep things moving along...We give cod liver oil and flax seed oil.

I kept a food diary for about 2 months, and couldn't discern a definite trigger. I noticed when she ate more dairy, she was more gassy/had stinky BM's, and foods like corn, peas (in excess), beans (in excess) thre things out of whack.
HTH!


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

I did it!
Here are pics of Sarah!

Hello to all of the new friends here! Rivka, I love your dc names.

Way to go, Deb, with O and the potty! I am so impressed.

Okay, update on my essentially non-verbal child!







I talk all day to him: "Okay, let's get mama dressed! Here's my shirt..." -- you all know the routine. Yesterday, he opened a drawer and pulled out a bra ...
Adam: "BRA!"
Me: (somewhat startled) "Yes, honey, that is mama's bra."
Adam: (quite pleased with himself, states proudly again...) "BRA!"
Me: "Yes, that is a bra. Thank you for using a word, son."
...and he goes along his business after that.

Today, he pulls out the bra again and we go through the same routine. I kneel down next to him and we name shirts, pants, etc., to no avail. He's all over the bra. Then, he pulls my shirt out, looks down it, and announces to me, looking at the bra I'm wearing: "BRA!"

I died laughing.







THIS is the only word he's gained in the last month?!?!
Too funny.

Have a good night, all.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18* 
Hi! can I join in too? I have 15 month old twins - a boy and a girl. Are you supposed to have a 15 mo check up?

We still are not sleeping at night. My little girl , Tehila, has been getting her molars and when one is coming through it is absolute torture for all of us. Gedalya , my little boy, has one molar through (Tehila has 3). When Tehila is not teething then she seems to sleep okay, but Gedalya is up nursing the whole night through.

Gedalya asks questions all day long - including in the middle of nursing: what's that, what's this. He also says a few other words -most notably hello. Tehila says hello and dog, but that's about it for her.

What do you feed your babies? I need new ideas.

About me: I'm a SAHM to 5 kids - all boys and one girl and stay busy mostly by cleaning my house or avoiding cleaning my house.

Hi! We always welcome new mamas here! I think you have the most kids out of all of us! ...how do you do it?







Since I am going to have 2 kids with me at home soon, I'll have a lot of questions for you mamas with more than 1!

My DS would eat ANYTHING you give him or see me eating! Right now, he loves peanut butter and jelly sandwich, fruits, apple sauce and yogurt/yogurt smoothies..(he literally obsorbed the whole carton of yogurt the other day.)..and oh he loves cereall!


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hopefulfaith* 
I did it!
Here are pics of Sarah!

Hello to all of the new friends here! Rivka, I love your dc names.

Way to go, Deb, with O and the potty! I am so impressed.

Okay, update on my essentially non-verbal child!







I talk all day to him: "Okay, let's get mama dressed! Here's my shirt..." -- you all know the routine. Yesterday, he opened a drawer and pulled out a bra ...
Adam: "BRA!"
Me: (somewhat startled) "Yes, honey, that is mama's bra."
Adam: (quite pleased with himself, states proudly again...) "BRA!"
Me: "Yes, that is a bra. Thank you for using a word, son."
...and he goes along his business after that.

Today, he pulls out the bra again and we go through the same routine. I kneel down next to him and we name shirts, pants, etc., to no avail. He's all over the bra. Then, he pulls my shirt out, looks down it, and announces to me, looking at the bra I'm wearing: "BRA!"

I died laughing.







THIS is the only word he's gained in the last month?!?!
Too funny.

Have a good night, all.










I'm glad you are doing well Emily! Adding in a laugh or two in the day is always healthy!







: I'm going to have a lot of stuff to ask you when my second one comes! be prepared...haha...well by then you'll be an expert with 2 right?!


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Ladies....something hit me tonight after I got out of the shower...

I looked down and I noticed... "holy cow, my stomach is HUGE! iS THIS REALLY 10-11 WEEKS?!" =\

I showed my DH and he exclaimed.."WOW...maybe it's twins...*nervous laugh*" Don't kid me...

I'm thinking...Maybe everyone's stomach is bigger the second time around....._right????_


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## adoremybabe (Jun 8, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *wsgrl84* 
Ladies....something hit me tonight after I got out of the shower...

I looked down and I noticed... "holy cow, my stomach is HUGE! iS THIS REALLY 10-11 WEEKS?!" =\

I showed my DH and he exclaimed.."WOW...maybe it's twins...*nervous laugh*" Don't kid me...

I'm thinking...Maybe everyone's stomach is bigger the second time around....._right????_

I just started to pop this weekend and I am already 17 weeks along. I think that it really depends on where the baby plunked itself inside the uterus. I have had more worry because my stomach is still so small but it's nice because I still fit into my pre preg jeans. BTW I just started feeling baby move!

Wow, DS loves bananas they have always been his favorite food. I hope that I can get him past them for a little bit to figure out this whole bowel thing. I have visited the Healing the Gut tribe in the past. I had leaky gut...no fun. At least I know what I have to do from here..... i hope!


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## adoremybabe (Jun 8, 2006)

fridgeart - How do you make sure that your DD gets enough calcium?


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Well... I'm all for having twins...but I think that one starts to show earlier with each pregnancy - I believe I usually showed around 13ish weeks, but maybe with the twins it was around 11?

food: I'm afraid of dairy, but caved tonight and I ate pizza (my first dairy in SIX months!!!). Gedalya has had ear infections in response, i think, to my dairy consumption - but a 6 mo. break is enough for me. I'm also afraid of peanut butter, but I eat that daily - so I suppose that they could try it? Gedalya likes me to spoon feed him, but Tehila has to do everything herself.


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *fridgeart* 
Do any of your kids have funny little nursing rituals? E started singing "boob-booob-boooooob-boooob" halfway through nursing, in sort of a scale, then smiling and going back to nursing. Cute. I like to think of it as sort of a "thanks, mom".

Laurel releases here and there throughout the nursing sesh, looks up at me as she smacks her lips, and says "ahhhh" with a great big satisfied smile. I love it!

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mtnsunshinemama*
I'll have a margarita and a massage and do some yoga on the beach for the collective WE!

yah, thanks! i'm sooo jealous. i love love love the yucatan! i hope you get to swim in some cenotes, bask in some beautiful weather, and have an epic time! if you check out tulum, look south to the lighthouse. my sister lived in that lighthouse for awhile. we stayed at the campground right south of the lighthouse. if you read this before you head out, there are really great drum circles there just about everynight. have so much fun!

btw- i'm very sorry to hear about your friend. truly heartbreaking.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18*
Hi! can I join in too?

the more the merrier!

the videos are ADORABLE!!!
my computer won't let me see sarah







: .
anyone heard from puddinpop?

wish me strength this week mamas. i am sooo busy. i have a pancha karma patient all week, plus my interns, plus quite a bit more. i need to stay grounded, focused and on my game...


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Wishing you ZEN MAMA vibes this week, Jeremy!

Emily, sad to report that I couldn't see Miss Sarah either. Some Yahoo glitch in the link.

Welcome to new mamas!!!

Should I be sleeping??? Why, yes, I should!

Jealous both of the trip to the Yucatan and of the happy baby songs when nursing. I give Owen a little toddler "cookie" a couple times a week and he does a very cute happy dance when I ask if he wants one. Not the same, but it makes me happy anyway!

I'm having marital struggles, mamas!!! There just isn't enough time in the day, and everything else come first. Tonight we had a spat about a WAFFLE. Bad sign. We never ever ever fought before we had the baby. It's rough...we are basically pitted against each other as we tag team throughout the day. I really think it may be worth it to quit my job to get some room to breathe around here. It's hard...I know you all know how it goes!

On a potentially good note, I found a groovy child care/preschool co-op that Owen could start when he is 18 months old. It is for 4 hours in the morning, 3 days of the week. It's all parent staffed. So he would go two days without me, and one day with me. It's only $85 a month and there's organic food, etc. It's play-centered. They are not cramming the alphabet down their throats. This sounds good, right??? I didn't want him to be in daycare at all, but this seems like a happy medium. What do you think, mamas? Would it be better to keep him with me and do some toddler classes and playdates instead? Since I work at night, I have absolutely NO time to do anything for myself let alone keep the household functioning. Plus we are renovating the kitchen, etc. Aaaahhhh...sorry for the anxiety rant...just venting at the end of the day.

Nonny...very different with #2? Or should I say #'s 2, 3, 4, and 5! It could be quadruplets!!!!







Just kidding...I'm sure it's one sweet baby and a uterus that knows how to stretch now.

Uh-oh...I hear Owen!

Love to all the mamas and little lovebugs!!

Emily...that was HYSTERICAL about the word "bra"!!!!

--Adrienne


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Okay, guys, nothing for days and now I can't keep up with you. Not much time to respond individually right now, but I read your posts and laugh and sympathize and hug each of you as needed!

Have any of you given your child something sugary and noticed a change in them because of it? We'd never given Henry any sugary stuff except for a teeny tiny piece of a cookie (and even that was rare and no chocolate) -- until last week, when my mom served butter cookies with green-colored sugar sprinkles and Henry wanted one. So I figured, a cookie at Grandma's, he's 16 months now, fine. He had about three cookies total (my sister gave him a third when I wasn't paying attention) and about fifteen minutes later he was smacking me in the face and trying to bite me (which he used to do but hasn't for months), laughing wildly the whole time.

I'm thinking that's no coincidence...


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

DS 1 responds to sugar so badly. This time of year is tough. At story hour- cookies.... at a Xmas party- cake..... you get the picture. He loves sweets and we deifinitely limit it ( he is 3 1/2) He goes crazy after sugar and has pretty bad behavior. I haven't noticed too much with Emmett. He has had a little sugar ( ice cream, etc. ) It doesn't seem to effect him the same way.
I try to limit it, like I said, but I am definitely a " most things in moderation" type of Mom, ykwim?
Good luck.
- Kerri


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *New Mama* 
Okay, guys, nothing for days and now I can't keep up with you. Not much time to respond individually right now, but I read your posts and laugh and sympathize and hug each of you as needed!

Have any of you given your child something sugary and noticed a change in them because of it? We'd never given Henry any sugary stuff except for a teeny tiny piece of a cookie (and even that was rare and no chocolate) -- until last week, when my mom served butter cookies with green-colored sugar sprinkles and Henry wanted one. So I figured, a cookie at Grandma's, he's 16 months now, fine. He had about three cookies total (my sister gave him a third when I wasn't paying attention) and about fifteen minutes later he was smacking me in the face and trying to bite me (which he used to do but hasn't for months), laughing wildly the whole time.

I'm thinking that's no coincidence...


that is how my almost 11 yr old acts when he has FOOD COLORING. He completely and totally loses it - he becomes a totally different child that is unrecognizable (except that we do recognize him from all of the times when he used to get food coloring - no more food coloring and he is a sweet boy!).


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

Hello my friends and welcome to the new mama!

I'm so out of it and feeling like I'm not doing anything well. Running around with several half-completed projects going at once.







: Annabelle is really in a bad place lately - I don't know if it's her molars, her age/stage, lack of words/frustration or all of the above! She's started hitting which means I've started having her sit in a "break" (really a time out) and making her sign "sorry" after.

I've been sewing like mad making lots of holiday gifts. I wanted this weekend to take some photos and make an online album, but I can't find my dh's digital camera! Wha????? I live in a 1000 sq ft two bedroom condo and I can't find the camera? Something is definitely WRONG!!! Maybe I'll find it in my freezer with Deb's yarn.

We are also still looking for a house and a car for me. I think we've found a house, but don't want to jinx it. We'd love to get that done this year. New Mama, what do you hear about your house?

Food: I'm really not a foodie, so the constant food prep is a bit of a hassle for me. Annabelle loves anything with tomato sauce or papa's special vinegarette. Getting her to sit still and eat for any extended period of time is challenging though. She is super busy and I think just eats/nurses enough to take the edge off, so she's constantly eating. Anyone else going through this? In terms of sugar, we haven't given any yet and won't until much later. With L I waited until she was three and it's been very limited since then (she's nine now) due to energy issues and immune system building. Sugar is a immune system killer!

She's still also waking two to three times a night to nurse. This is getting really hard for me too. I'm hanging in there for now, because we can't move her (no room, plus we'll hopefully be moving soon) and she doesn't accept no milk well either. How are you all doing with nighttime stuff? Do they, like sweet Adam, spontaneously just begin sleeping through? By nine months or so, Lily was waking only once. I've been considering moving A into her own bed at night so she can just come into our bed when she wants. Don't know if it's the need for milk or the need for mom that wakes her, but she's a terror to sleep with. I do notice that once I'm in the room with her, she wakes more often. I know I'm rambling, but I'm sooooo tired!

Emily, I can't see Sarah either







. Can you test that link?


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18* 
that is how my almost 11 yr old acts when he has FOOD COLORING. He completely and totally loses it - he becomes a totally different child that is unrecognizable (except that we do recognize him from all of the times when he used to get food coloring - no more food coloring and he is a sweet boy!).

Yes, I wondered about that as well. It definitely had food coloring in it -- green sprinkles that stained his hands and tongue. I've been very careful of what we feed him so far. I think the only other time he's had food coloring is when he's had some Kraft mac & cheese (he wanted some of DH's -- we only feed him the Annie's Organic stuff).


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ktmama* 

I've been sewing like mad making lots of holiday gifts. I wanted this weekend to take some photos and make an online album, but I can't find my dh's digital camera! Wha????? I live in a 1000 sq ft two bedroom condo and I can't find the camera? Something is definitely WRONG!!! Maybe I'll find it in my freezer with Deb's yarn.

Try this: SEE yourself finding the camera. FEEL it in your hands as you discover it. Even say out loud to yourself as you visualize: "I found it! Here it is!" FEEL what it is like to find the camera. OBviously it's there, right?

This seems to work for everyone I know who tries it. Including me!


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## adoremybabe (Jun 8, 2006)

I thought that I was the only one who lost things! Get this.. Since last week I can't find my wedding or anniversary rings!!! I am just sick about it. We have also lost a TV remote. That I'm not so bothered about but DH is. Go figure.

I really really wish that I'd had stuck to my guns with no sugar. DS and I go to my mom's once a week and he always seems to get treats. My mom knows that we have to figure out what has been affecting his bowels though so I know she'll keep that stuff away from him.

Ds has been sleeping better through the night but seems to want to nurse more during the day. We have been slowly weaning because it's just too much for me being pregnant and all. I think that today I am going to take the mattress out of his crib and put it in our room to try and transition him out of our bed. I know what some of you mamas are thinking about the weaning from nursing and cosleeping but we are going slow and in the end I just know it will make everyone here a bit more pleasant.


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *adoremybabe* 
fridgeart - How do you make sure that your DD gets enough calcium?

Well, we do SOME dairy...she's still nursing 2x a day, and she gets a tub of yogourt (or soy yogourt, if her eczema is flaring up), and sometimes cheese. Every other day or so, she gets some milk. She also gets soy or rice milk in a smoothie every morning, and sometimes Ill mix a soy/rice/cow milk drink for her. She LOVES milk. Boo.

Wow-so much to catch up on!
EStreet-that sucks. DH and I are the same-we NEVER fought (we were that gross couple that always got along, were best friends, etc.), and since DD's arrival, we've fought so much. About stupid things like waffles too! I hear ya-it sucks. I think taking some time for yourself and for you two as a couple is the best idea. We started doing some stuff without E, and making time, even when tired, busy, etc. and we are starting to remember how much fun we used to have, and how much we used to like each other. That preschool sounds awesome-I would totally be all over something like that, if they had it here. It's great that you get to be involved-and that it's so cheap! Go for it. It sounds like a good balance of you and Owen time, and it will give you some time on your own...which is heavenly. I started going to the gym (they have a great daycare) 4x a week, and I think part of why I like it so much is that I have 90 minutes to myself-and I'm not at home to feel guilty about not cleaning the house, making dinner, etc. etc.
About sugar-E still hasn't really had any. I was thinking of cracking at xmas-cause I already get so much flack for being such a "control freak" about her food from family- and like you say, it's just a cookie, right?...but hearing about others' experiences-I'm kind of reluctant again! We'll see. She's had maple syrup (a tiny bit on waffles) but I haven't noticed any behaviour changes-just total enjoyment.
Well, I'm going to go enjoy some of the homemade candy we made this weekend, because I'm going to the dentist later this afternoon to have two fillings replaced-so I won't be able to have any for a day or two ;( I guess it'll be good to have these old mercury-laden ones fillings gone, but I don't relish the thought of all those needles and drilling, yuck!
Bye!


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Food coloring hides in all sorts of products - like pickles and hot peppers. You'd be surprised at the places where there is food coloring.
Sugar: I'm so bad about it. I eat waay too much junk. I keep thinking about eating healthier and I really do want to, but then I have to make it and that's where everythjing just falls apart. I don't have time, or the energy, and I never have the ingredients that I need (dh does the shopping and half the time doesn't believe me when I ask for something - he'll say: Oh, I didn't know you really needed it, I thought you only wanted it!). So, then it's just easier to go eat a cookie - or 3







.
My babies have had sugar. I wish they hadn't but it's too late now.


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

Sorry! Picture link fixed.







Here's the link again!

Sugar...I'm not the best person in the world when it comes to Adam's eating -- his current fave is a PB&J sandwich for breakfast







-- although I did get the natural PB and the low-sugar J -- but I try to be good, and I'm just cringing at the thought of Christmas with my mom and family... I know it's going to be one big "let's just give him a taste"-fest.... I am worried about the effects of a lot of sugar, and I want to limit it... We'll see how it goes. I don't mind moderation, but I also don't think he -needs- a taste of 15 people's cookies...

Adrienne, ((hugs)). I admit that I smiled when you mentioned the waffle. Dh and I fought about pancakes a little while back -- gotta love breakfast food battles!







Parenting really seems to magnify the things I thought I could live with five years ago...and now wonder how I ever will..... Hugs and bright thoughts your way. I also think a few hours a few mornings a week doesn't sound bad, either....it really sounds like a nice situation, actually... Play-centered and organic food, $85, and you're with him one of the mornings? I admit, I'd be strongly considering it, too.

Nonny, I showed -way- earlier with Sarah than I did with Adam, and I also wondered if I had multiples. Hang in there! I look forward to hearing about your experience! I hope you are already receiving foot massages.









Adoremybabe, we also weaned from cosleeping and drinking during the night. It was a long, gentle process (6 months plus for both), but it really wasn't bad for Adam, I don't think, since it was such a long, drawn-out process. Adam still comes in with us at around 6:30 am and anytime he truly needs to, but he is honestly sleeping better. He's down to 0-2 nightwakings from an all-time high of 11 and an average of 3-4 on any given night. I think it worked for us. Just my experience. It IS so much more difficult during pregnancy; I am sending you a big hug, mama!

Kate, I need to hear more about the time-out/"break" situation.







Adam has begun hitting, too, and I am so new at GD. I don't know anyone IRL who practices it, and I raised my voice at him again when he hit Sarah again this morning. It wasn't hard; she didn't even open her eyes, but it made me furious -- and he laughed at me. I nearly lost it.
-- Does Annabelle understand where you're going with it?
-- How long do you do it?
-- Does she sit in a break independently, or do you sit with her?
-- Is it helping?

Adam also has no words and has had a lot of difficult days since Sarah arrived; his entire personality has changed, it seems, and he's pushing my buttons like never before. I know he has a huge adjustment, and I know the loss of 100% of my attention is huge, but I just can't have him hitting me and Sarah and biting me (my shirt, actually). His worst moments come when I am nursing Sarah, and I have offered several times to let him nurse -- he won't







-- and I try to play with him/read with him while I'm nursing, but he'll get up and do things like play with plugs/sockets, all the while chanting "no no no no" while he's doing it... and I don't want to unlatch Sarah *every* time she nurses -- I think that would be a frustrating scenario -- but 9/10 times when I nurse, Adam is seeking my attention -- and I am slowly learning to walk and nurse at the same time, but ... well, here we are. Help!!

NewMama and Kate -- happy house thoughts.

I feel like I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things this week -- I want to keep it up -- and I am glad to be back here. I like hanging around you guys.

Have a good night!

P.S. - Sarah fits into her small Fuzzibunz now, and we're on day 2 of two kids in CD. Wow, laundry!







Amazing.


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Emily, Sarah is beautiful. I'm sorry about your difficulties with Adam. I wish I had some advice. Henry does a little bit of the testing me -- putting his hand on things he KNOWS he's not supposed to touch and watching me to see if I'm watching. But at least I can give him 100% of my attention; it must be so frustrating for you. Have you tried asking in the GD forum for advice?

About the house -- we got it. The guy countered our offer and refused our counter to his counter, lol, so we just accepted it. We close on February 15th, and just listed our house tonight. Our first open house is this Sunday. Yikes! My sister came today and will come again Thursday to watch Henry for a few hours so I can get some stuff done (today I caulked and touched up some paint...fun!). I have a lot to do, but I think I can shove enough stuff into drawers to make it look presentable for now, and declutter/organize/pack little by little. Thank God for my sister! It's amazing what I can get done in a few short hours now.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *adoremybabe* 
I thought that I was the only one who lost things! Get this.. Since last week I can't find my wedding or anniversary rings!!! I am just sick about it. We have also lost a TV remote. That I'm not so bothered about but DH is. Go figure.

I really really wish that I'd had stuck to my guns with no sugar. DS and I go to my mom's once a week and he always seems to get treats. My mom knows that we have to figure out what has been affecting his bowels though so I know she'll keep that stuff away from him.

Ds has been sleeping better through the night but seems to want to nurse more during the day. We have been slowly weaning because it's just too much for me being pregnant and all. I think that today I am going to take the mattress out of his crib and put it in our room to try and transition him out of our bed. I know what some of you mamas are thinking about the weaning from nursing and cosleeping but we are going slow and in the end I just know it will make everyone here a bit more pleasant.

Oh yea...I tend to forget stuff too...mostly while I'm out...and DH makes fun of me for it and won't stop talking about it. I get brain farts, sue me.

My DS was weaned in the beginning of November, took me about a month or so, slowly decreased the feedings down to once a day, and now it's still once a day or none at all. I think he's finally realizing that my milk has disappeared! *gasp*


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *New Mama* 
Emily, Sarah is beautiful. I'm sorry about your difficulties with Adam. I wish I had some advice. Henry does a little bit of the testing me -- putting his hand on things he KNOWS he's not supposed to touch and watching me to see if I'm watching. But at least I can give him 100% of my attention; it must be so frustrating for you. Have you tried asking in the GD forum for advice?

About the house -- we got it. The guy countered our offer and refused our counter to his counter, lol, so we just accepted it. We close on February 15th, and just listed our house tonight. Our first open house is this Sunday. Yikes! My sister came today and will come again Thursday to watch Henry for a few hours so I can get some stuff done (today I caulked and touched up some paint...fun!). I have a lot to do, but I think I can shove enough stuff into drawers to make it look presentable for now, and declutter/organize/pack little by little. Thank God for my sister! It's amazing what I can get done in a few short hours now.


Congrats on the new house!!!!!!! Yaay....the search is over! You must feel relieved. What a great Valentine's Day present!







Good luck with the new house!


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Adrienne -







s to you...I completely understand the fightings/arguments. If there weren't any arguments ever, marriage life will be so boring won't it? 9 times out of 10, husbands argue with us because there's something _else_ other than you that is bothering them. Try to think what it is and be more sensitive. It kinda helped me here.

Emily- Sara is so adorable, look at her wittle tiny hands...Awwww how dare Adam hit his precious sister! *grr* I'm sure he is just a little jealous that Sara is so much more adorable than he is...







just jk. I could stare at Sara sleeping all day, I'm sure you do already! See... if you get angry at Adam for anything, just look at Sara, then everything will seem perfect again. Or get on MDC and chat with us lovely mamas like I do


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18* 
Food coloring hides in all sorts of products - like pickles and hot peppers. You'd be surprised at the places where there is food coloring.
Sugar: I'm so bad about it. I eat waay too much junk. I keep thinking about eating healthier and I really do want to, but then I have to make it and that's where everythjing just falls apart. I don't have time, or the energy, and I never have the ingredients that I need (dh does the shopping and half the time doesn't believe me when I ask for something - he'll say: Oh, I didn't know you really needed it, I thought you only wanted it!). So, then it's just easier to go eat a cookie - or 3







.
My babies have had sugar. I wish they hadn't but it's too late now.


Don't feel bad, I sneak in some sugar in my day too, especially now that I am pregnant and I can eat whatever I desire or I will bite anyone's head off if they stop me!!







I do try to balance out my food choices, and junk food is always in moderation but always there in case I really want it.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

I really like this thread that I bumped into. If you ever need a laugh about toddlers...
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=573324

time for bed! Goodnight!


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hopefulfaith* 
Kate, I need to hear more about the time-out/"break" situation.







Adam has begun hitting, too, and I am so new at GD. I don't know anyone IRL who practices it, and I raised my voice at him again when he hit Sarah again this morning. It wasn't hard; she didn't even open her eyes, but it made me furious -- and he laughed at me. I nearly lost it.
-- Does Annabelle understand where you're going with it?
-- How long do you do it?
-- Does she sit in a break independently, or do you sit with her?
-- Is it helping?

Adam also has no words and has had a lot of difficult days since Sarah arrived; his entire personality has changed, it seems, and he's pushing my buttons like never before. I know he has a huge adjustment, and I know the loss of 100% of my attention is huge, but I just can't have him hitting me and Sarah and biting me (my shirt, actually). His worst moments come when I am nursing Sarah, and I have offered several times to let him nurse -- he won't







-- and I try to play with him/read with him while I'm nursing, but he'll get up and do things like play with plugs/sockets, all the while chanting "no no no no" while he's doing it... and I don't want to unlatch Sarah *every* time she nurses -- I think that would be a frustrating scenario -- but 9/10 times when I nurse, Adam is seeking my attention -- and I am slowly learning to walk and nurse at the same time, but ... well, here we are. Help!!

Hi, I'd like to respond, but a baby is fussing. I'm going to try, but may have to leave abruptly.

Time out is really intended for kids older than Adam - he is just a baby. I find that redirecting works much better than time out. for example







as he's hitting your baby - exclaim: Oh, look out the window...I see a car!!!! oooohhhh)
I would keep redirecting - or rephrasing - 'no' can be overused and I, at least, want it to work when I need it so i want to use it sparingly. Gentle is a word I use a lot. Gentle hands, gentle baby, gentle touch, nice hands, nice baby, pat the baby. Yay! (as you are guiding his hands to be gentle).

Adam is just a baby (I know I said that already, but it bears repeating). he's just a baby. My babies are just babies - and so is my 5 yr old. And my 8 yr old is just a little boy - and my almost 11? he's merely a boy - he needs my guidance.
I would get a few toys that are new to Adam and keep them in a box/basket near where you nurse - make them exciting and let him take them out while you're nursing. My babies are getting jealous of each other when one is nursing or being held - so I talk to the other: it's going to be your turn next. Mommy is going to hold you/nurse you really soon. You're doing a good job waiting. What a big boy! (I know some people don't like this phrase, but I use it). When you get more skilled at nursing Sarah you can move around while you nurse her and use your other hand for Adam.

Okay, Tehila is very loudly crying. I'm off. I hope that something I said made sense. If not, discount the whole thing.


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Look at Miss Sarah!!!! She is SO beautiful!!! She looks strong and healthy and peaceful. You are a wonderful mama, Emily!!!!

It must be SO hard with Adam! I was thinking of you the other day as I was holding a friend's new baby. Owen did not like it at all!! He's not a huggy guy and he was all over me making sure that the baby knew that I was HIS mama.

I think we're turning another developmental corner, mamas, and some of this challenging behavior is part of that. Owen is flinging himself on the floor to wail more frequently and about more ridiculous things. I bet that as we start to approach 18 months they are going to be talking more and we'll see some other developments.

I have to go to sleep. Thanks for support re the marriage. I am stressed about it but we're taking steps to get things straightened out.

New Mama...CONGRATULATIONS!!!! Wow...now the real work begins, huh? Glad your sister is around to help. Let us know how the inspection goes!

Night, night lovely mamas...

--Adrienne

PS...Yeah...what DID happen to PuddinPop??? It's been a loooong time since we've heard from her. Hmmmm....


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18* 
Time out is really intended for kids older than Adam - he is just a baby.

I agree. I can't imagine trying to put Henry in a time out. Being silly or tickling or redirecting or doing something interesting so that he'll come over and join in -- these are all much more appropriate (and effective) solutions. It's hard for me on this thread -- because I love all you guys so much -- to state an opposite viewpoint. I don't want to seem like I'm being judgmental. I'm not anyone else's mama; just Henry's! But I do think 16 months is too little for time-outs.


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

_Time out is really intended for kids older than Adam - he is just a baby. I find that redirecting works much better than time out. for exampleas he's hitting your baby - exclaim: Oh, look out the window...I see a car!!!! oooohhhh)
I would keep redirecting - or rephrasing - 'no' can be overused and I, at least, want it to work when I need it so i want to use it sparingly. Gentle is a word I use a lot. Gentle hands, gentle baby, gentle touch, nice hands, nice baby, pat the baby. Yay! (as you are guiding his hands to be gentle)._

_I agree. I can't imagine trying to put Henry in a time out. Being silly or tickling or redirecting or doing something interesting so that he'll come over and join in -- these are all much more appropriate (and effective) solutions. It's hard for me on this thread -- because I love all you guys so much -- to state an opposite viewpoint. I don't want to seem like I'm being judgmental. I'm not anyone else's mama; just Henry's! But I do think 16 months is too little for time-outs._

I know we all have parenting differences, but as long as we're stating our philosophies, here's mine: I can tolerate many, many things, but violence is not one of them. There is no hitting in my house. period.


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

Sorry if my last post kind of shut things down, but having someone say my parenting strategies aren't "appropriate" made me honestly feel defensive.


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## chiro_kristin (Dec 31, 2004)

Understandable, Kate. To be honest, I'm amazed you can get her to do it. I wouldn't be able to get CJ in a time out. I'm pretty much in a loss when it comes to the throwing food on the floor thing. He does it decisively. Sometimes to get a reaction out of me. Sometimes just because its fun. I know it's part of being the age, but I'm tired of him wasting so much food that I've prepared for him. And it doesn't necessarily mean he's not really hungry. Oh, he's hungry. I've tried just taking the food away and giving it back later when he asks again, but he'll just throw it on the floor again. It is stuff he likes.







I don't see how redirection would work with this. I've tried eating with him. I've tried leaving him alone. And before anyone suggests it for me, I've been way turned off by the GD forum, so I don't go there.

Sarah is so beautiful!!!! Thank you for sharing pictures. She is just perfect! I'm sorry Adam is jealous and acting out. That must be so hard to deal with. I think CJ would react the same way.

NewMama, congrats on the house! Woo hoo!!!!

Adrienne, hugs about the marriage stuff.


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Well, hmmm...the one thing I've learned for certain in the last 16 months is I am the only one who can say what is right for my son.

I also have learned that this is a very resourceful and conscientious group of mamas!

Ok...I have also learned not to let the baby near the peacock poo at the zoo...but that is another matter entirely.









Kate, I totally trust your parenting!!! In fact, Owen will be arriving by FedEx in the morning!









Love to all the mamas!!! Good night, babies!!!

--Adrienne


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

_Kate, I totally trust your parenting!!! In fact, Owen will be arriving by FedEx in the morning!_


























































































































It won't do any good because I'll just spoil him rotten!


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Aww...I want to be frosted too!!!


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Your wish has been granted. Any others? I'm on a roll...


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ktmama* 
Sorry if my last post kind of shut things down, but having someone say my parenting strategies aren't "appropriate" made me honestly feel defensive.









I'm sorry...I was thinking about this and I think maybe A is a lot more mature socially than Henry is. There's no way he would sit in a time-out or understand _why_ he was in a time-out. On the occasions when I've been severely tested by him (which honestly are few, as he's pretty easy going) I've yelled or tried to restrain him, and it does absolutely nothing. So for _Henry_, and for _me_, that strategy isn't appropriate.

I still do think time-outs are not the way to go in general, but as a first-time mom I admit I don't have all the answers. I think you're a wonderful mama from everything you've written.


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *EStreetMama* 
Your wish has been granted. Any others? I'm on a roll...

What does getting frosted mean?


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ktmama* 
Sorry if my last post kind of shut things down, but having someone say my parenting strategies aren't "appropriate" made me honestly feel defensive.









I've been thinking all day about how to respond, but haven't had a chance to get to the computer (2 of my kids are still up). I didn't mean to say that you were not doing the right thing - I said that I felt (me personally) that 15/16 months is too young for time out. And now... a story.







: about me. and my firstborn. when I knew all. I started timeouts with him when he was about 18 months old. I was pregnant with my second son. I put Akiva in his room for the timeout and i sat in a chair in the living room to wait. I was teaching full time and we were home on my break -- and............ I FELL ASLEEP!!! my poor baby! he was in timeout for sooo long (and yes, for some unknown reason he stayed there). I still feel the guilt 10 yrs later.

It's so hard to know what the right thing to do is for each child. Especially when the child is your first - you ,at least I , tend to come down harder on that child than on subsequent children (even if you think you don't, you do, truly). I think that I've softened as I've grown as a parent (and harbor many feelings of guilt and regret about parenting my oldest more strictly). the bad deal is that the oldest is still my first and I still come down harder on him than on the others - and then comes the guilt.

I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I'm sorry. Hitting is definitely not acceptable and I agree with you, but babies don't know better (so explains the bite marks on my arm from my teething ones - they like to bite material and every once in a while my skin gets in the way).


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *chiro_kristin* 
Understandable, Kate. To be honest, I'm amazed you can get her to do it. I wouldn't be able to get CJ in a time out. I'm pretty much in a loss when it comes to the throwing food on the floor thing. He does it decisively. Sometimes to get a reaction out of me. Sometimes just because its fun. I know it's part of being the age, but I'm tired of him wasting so much food that I've prepared for him. And it doesn't necessarily mean he's not really hungry. Oh, he's hungry. I've tried just taking the food away and giving it back later when he asks again, but he'll just throw it on the floor again. It is stuff he likes.







I don't see how redirection would work with this. I've tried eating with him. I've tried leaving him alone. And before anyone suggests it for me, I've been way turned off by the GD forum, so I don't go there.

My babies do this and it drives me nuts. They get a kick out of seeing things fall to the floor and all the better if we will bend down and get it so that they can do it again. Talk about a great game!
(some of the time I've taken to just feeding them on the floor - i can't believe I just said that







), but at least they can't throw it far.


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *New Mama* 
What does getting frosted mean?

it means that you have found favor in the eyes of the others - or something like that. It's a game where you get pmed with a cute poem and then you get to add it to your sig and pass it on to others. I've been frosted twice now, but haven't gotten around to responding or adding it to my sig. Much appreciated and I thank you all for the welcome!


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

My response to Kate was bothering me to the point that I got out of bed and re-started the computer. I have a bad habit of backing down and soft-pedaling things when other people get defensive or feel hurt by something I've said, even when I wasn't attacking them.

So here it is: I don't believe time-outs are appropriate for 16-month olds. It's not that I don't just think they're appropriate for Henry. I don't think they're appropriate for _any_ 16-month old. I just don't.

BUT that doesn't mean I think Kate is a bad parent. It just means we disagree.

There. Now I can go back to bed, lol.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

hey mamas, before I read all the new posts, I have a dilemma that I can't decide what to do about.

I thought I take a quick poll here.

*Question: Should I spend Dec 28-Jan 1st in NY with DH, DS and in-laws?

Reasons Why I Want To Go:*
-a nice change of location from, MD
-always wanted to visit the city for new year's eve
-wanted to go somewhere before baby #2 is born
-do a little shopping, experience new food, maybe get a new haircut for myself
-see some broadway shows
-overall a nice break from being SAHM all week and every week

*Reasons Why I Don't Want to Go:
*-taking a toddler to the city..very tiring...afraid of loosing him
-temperature is only in the 40's
-walking around with a big tummy AND a toddler
-can't take a nap whenever I want to
-same stores in NY as here but just more expensive
-trying to cosleep in a new hotel
-just having a possibly fussy whining tired toddler in the middle of NYC is not appealing to me right now.

Appreciate the responses! I really can't decide...I'm so bad at making a decision sometime!


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Now back to the conversation here..

To respond to what you mamas said about disciplining and time-outs.

I too do not think my Christopher is willing to sit there for however long for time-outs. Actually I am chuckling at the idea because Christopher can NOT sit still at all!!!! If any of you can accomplish it with him... I'll give you a cookie.

And if it works for you, *ktmama*, then I am very jealous and applaud you...







I think it's great that you can do time-outs right now.. I think my DS needs one every now and then too...my head hurts looking at him running around touching everything!

The last time I checked, MDC wasn't about criticizing each other's parenting styles.








to all the mamas

Have a good night!


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Nonny, I'd say go for it! We have done a lot of travelling with DD, and it always works out. If he gets cranky, head back to the hotel for some R&R, or to a kid-friendly museum or space...We found that as long as we maintained our normal routine (or at least as much as possible) DD was happy. Plus, the first trimester is great for travelling--you can't be that big yet!







don't forget that your inlaws would probably love to babysit for you, so you can have a little break.


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

Typing one-handed with a wiiiiiiide-awake baby here. Thw whole house is asleep -- I wanna be, too!

Nonny, I'd go to NY! Your reasons to go are more convincing than not to go! I think Christopher would love it -- lots of new sights and people -- and I've only been once, for one day, but I had loads of fun. Go!

I'm glad we can all respect each other here on our thread enough to disagree. I felt bad for asking Kate questions about her style when it brought such controversy, but I feel good that we can discuss it as friends. I am glad of that. On a positive note, Adam was waving a pot at Sarah's head today *the fun never ends!*







: -- I took him on my lap and offered him "a break" for a little less than a minute and hugged him and we "talked" about how we don't give owies to people. Okay, *I* did all that and *he* squirmed like crazy ........... but, when I was done, he was happy and found a new, more fun activity. Mission accomplished.

I came to a realization today. =Perspective: yesterday sucked. Big time. By noon, all three of us were in tears and I was going to lose it so bad I shut myself in the bathroom for about 2 minutes so I wouldn't go crazy on Adam. The problem was solved since I stopped everything and all three of us took a nap for two hours. Much happiness afterward, from everyone.

I realized today, though, that I can't do everything now that I did when I was parenting Adam. By everything, I mean...well, everything. Make all the beds every morning. Tidy every single room every day. Etc., etc., etc. I just can't. And the times when we are most miserable at my house are when I am trying to do all of that and care for these two at the same time. I know it sounds so basic, but I actually sat down on the floor and thought about it today...and then proceeded to just "be mom" for the rest of the afternoon without worrying about the unmade beds upstairs. We were all much happier.
I think my house will be dirtier and messier, but my kids and I will be happier. It sounds like such a cliche when I type it, but it was honestly a revelation this morning to me. So, we'll see how it goes.







As long as we're all in clean undies, then I guess we're all fine, right?
......Although if I lose it again, I'm FedExing MYSELF to Kate's house. Owen and I will have a great time!























Kristen, I could have written your post about the food. I've tried everything with Adam's throwing food on the floor -- he mostly does it when he's finished eating, but with every bit he throws, he casts it off with great drama and exclaims "No!" at it. Literally -- he looks at his hand with the piece of food in it, tells it no, and throws it down with great force. If you figure out a great solution, I'd love to hear it.

My food problem at the moment -- besides that -- is that when A first started eating table food, he would take the entire bowl or plate and cast the contents on the floor. My solution then was to just give him food on his high chair tray -- sans tableware. Problem now? He thinks food doesn't _belong_ on a plate/bowl. When you present him with pieces of food in a bowl, etc., he will very carefully take them all out, put them on the tray, and place the bowl to the side. Only then will he eat the food. If anyone has any solutions to that, I'd love to hear them.







I just keep on keeping on. Food is given to him on plates now, and I try to discourage the removal ... we're at about 50% now.... However, he's getting better with a fork and spoon, and he ate all of his cottage cheese today with a spoon without spilling! How cool that was! He just grinned at me, curds in teeth, when I commented on it to him. I love that kid!

AH HA! Sarah is asleep now. Now I am going back to bed.

Love to all.








Happy Thursday!

p.s. - Sarah is 5 weeks old today. She has three chins! More pics to come soon!


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hopefulfaith* 
On a positive note, Adam was waving a pot at Sarah's head today *the fun never ends!*







: -- I took him on my lap and offered him "a break" for a little less than a minute and hugged him and we "talked" about how we don't give owies to people. Okay, *I* did all that and *he* squirmed like crazy ........... but, when I was done, he was happy and found a new, more fun activity. Mission accomplished.

I really like this approach. It's when they're acting out that they need your validation the most...sounds contradictory, but I think it's true.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hopefulfaith* 
I realized today, though, that I can't do everything now that I did when I was parenting Adam. By everything, I mean...well, everything. Make all the beds every morning. Tidy every single room every day. Etc., etc., etc. I just can't. And the times when we are most miserable at my house are when I am trying to do all of that and care for these two at the same time. I know it sounds so basic, but I actually sat down on the floor and thought about it today...and then proceeded to just "be mom" for the rest of the afternoon without worrying about the unmade beds upstairs. We were all much happier.

First of all, I'm SHOCKED that you were able to do all that with "just" Adam. I have only recently been able to cook dinner almost every night, and even then I'm sometimes doing most of it with 30-pound Henry on one hip. Make all the beds? Tidy every room? HA! I was lucky if I put one basket of laundry away. So the fact that you're caring for a toddler and a new baby and the house is messy...well, that's to be EXPECTED. I just figure my house will be tidy all the time at some point in the distant future, but Henry is only little once.


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

About a week ago I changed A's nighttime routine so that nursing comes earlier in the routine and I lay her down awake. For the last three nights, I've laid her down, left the room and she's fallen asleep by herself! Now, hopefully, she will be able to get herself back to sleep at least some of the times she wakes in the night. She will, right? Right? Right?

Oh, and she's using a spoon now too!

And I finally gave her a haircut today


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

i so appreciate the diversity and respect within this group. i also appreciate _all_ parenting styles that come from a place of love, and i know that everyone here parents from this place...because we all love our children with all of our hearts.

nonny, i say GO GO GO! DH and I spent a new years in manhattan and it was fabulous! if i had a chance to do it with laurel and a baby in the belly i would do it again in a heartbeat...even if it were just for all the great food!

...with every bit he throws, he casts it off with great drama and exclaims "No!" at it. Literally -- he looks at his hand with the piece of food in it, tells it no, and throws it down with great force.










Kate, I totally trust your parenting!!! In fact, Owen will be arriving by FedEx in the morning!










thanks for the laughs, mamas!


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

i have no idea why my url thingies didn't work...


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hopefulfaith* 
On a positive note, Adam was waving a pot at Sarah's head today *the fun never ends!*







: -- I took him on my lap and offered him "a break" for a little less than a minute and hugged him and we "talked" about how we don't give owies to people. Okay, *I* did all that and *he* squirmed like crazy ........... but, when I was done, he was happy and found a new, more fun activity. Mission accomplished.

That's awesome! nothing like a little cuddling to help move on.

Quote:

I came to a realization today. =Perspective: yesterday sucked. Big time. By noon, all three of us were in tears and I was going to lose it so bad I shut myself in the bathroom for about 2 minutes so I wouldn't go crazy on Adam. The problem was solved since I stopped everything and all three of us took a nap for two hours. Much happiness afterward, from everyone.
I think that's great. I wish we could get our naps coordinated over here. I definitely need sleep - last night I got to sleep from 1:30 until 6 - while taking turns nursing both babies the whole night long.

Quote:

I realized today, though, that I can't do everything now that I did when I was parenting Adam. By everything, I mean...well, everything. Make all the beds every morning. Tidy every single room every day. Etc., etc., etc. I just can't. And the times when we are most miserable at my house are when I am trying to do all of that and care for these two at the same time. I know it sounds so basic, but I actually sat down on the floor and thought about it today...and then proceeded to just "be mom" for the rest of the afternoon without worrying about the unmade beds upstairs. We were all much happier.
I think my house will be dirtier and messier, but my kids and I will be happier. It sounds like such a cliche when I type it, but it was honestly a revelation this morning to me. So, we'll see how it goes.







As long as we're all in clean undies, then I guess we're all fine, right?
Every day I vacuum and straighten my main floor at least once. You can't tell. I'm beginning to get very frustrated. I rotate what days I clean the other floors. I have let a lot go. I sometimes skip dusting upstairs and even occasionally skip dusting on the main floor. I keep trying to tell myself that I should let it go, but it's really hard - especially when I 'm the only one cleaning.


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## Momsteader (Dec 13, 2002)

Heyyyyyy ladies! Kristin reminded me to come and update







I'm so bad about that LOL

Things are going well with little Miss Charlotte. She's SOOO big! Wears almost a 3T in most things at 16 mos.







: The 3T is a little long in the leg, but not much. I just got back from the second trip this year visiting with her, and she's going to be a big sister! YAHOOO!!!! We went out in August and attempted a transfer, but it failed







So, we were back in December on the SAME day we transferred with her two years before. So....this new babe and she have the same due dates! August 2007 expecting here I am hehehe

I'm not sure if these links will work or not, but here she and I are on the last trip. We were at Medieval Times--a dinner tournament and show with knights and such--hence the crown I'm wearing! LOL And here she is with her happy parents! And, here she is with her daddy when my 7 you pushed in a real mini shopping cart full of goodies for her for Christmas. They were both 'Wow'd' and all but the cart was WAHM-made







Awesome Christmas!

My boys are doing great--10 and almost 7 now. Going crazy with Greek and Roman mythology right now, so I get lots of "If Apollo and Hercules got into a battle, who would win?" from my 7 year old, and then "That would NEVER happen!" from my 10 year old who then proceeds to explain in detail WHY it would never happen...LOL And, here I thought this my be my last stint in the expecting club, but my hubby has agreed that he wants another one or two of our own







So, next time I'm back, it will be for me!

Hope all your August 2005 babies are doing great!







And that you all have a happy holiday season!!


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Wow Holly. You are amazing. Congrats on the pregnancy. How are oyu feeling? It was so cool to see that you wrote in. We missed you.

- Kerri


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## chiro_kristin (Dec 31, 2004)

Charlotte is beautiful. What a great mix of her parents!


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

Nonny- You should soooo go! I traveled with Cheyne in October and it was sooo fine. It really couldnt' have gone better. Besides the less kids you have the easier it is to travel. Won't it be nice to have some time to yourself to shop, etc? (assuming you leave christopher with your inlaws) Next year you won't be able to do that kind of stuff. DO IT!







(sorry, that's something my dh and I say a lot from that movie, Starsky and Hutch







)

Emily- Don't wear yourself out before the getting gets going sweetie. You have a 5 week old. For crying out loud, you were probably just given the ok to do housework a week or so ago. Give yourself a break. My 2 are 31 mos. apart and there are days (most of them in fact







) that I just throw my hands up and do not clean anything. It's all about perspective. I realized that the rooms I appreciate being kept picked up are my bedroom and the kitchen. THose are my 2 priorities and the rest gets done when it gets done. I read someone's siggie that was soooo true: "Keeping a clean house all the time with small children is like shoveling snow in a blizzard"!









I just wanted to say that my DD and I were stringing fruit/ popcorn garland for a small tree outside and singing carols and I realized that she was saying:
"Come let us adoregon" instead of "come let us adore him" cracked me up!









Saturday we're going to drive to the santaclaus house and see santa. Yes, there is a Santa claus house. . That's what happens when you live in North Pole! I should post pics of it. We'll see how C reacts to Santa.

Off to bake cookies now. . .I love this time of year.. .(um, that should read, I love the green light to bake lots of different cookies and eat a lot of them)









Thanks for posting Holly, I was wondering what you are up to. Apparently, a lot.









Happy Thursday ladies! *Hugs* to you all


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

to the frosting fairy...thank you for the dusting, but when i went to change my siggie they told me i couldn't cuz you can only have 8 smilies and i have way more, so the change wouldn't stick. thanks, though







!

today i cleaned almost nothing. not like me, but it was sorta refreshing. after laurel goes to sleep i'll come pick up, though. can't take it much longer. but we had quite a fun day, laurel and i, trashing the joint!

for a girl who barely ever eats anything but boobjuice, she ate a whole avo, a whole potato, 1/4 of a pumpkin, some cheddar bunnies, some pumpkin soup and bread, some honeywheat o's, some tangelo, and lots of breastmilk. girlfriend has a worm today or something...


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## Aeriane (Apr 4, 2005)

Hey Kristin, I was doing Christmas cards for the people on the Down Syndrome board I'm on and turns out one of the mamas on there is from Noblesville too! Small world!

Holly? You rock! Congratulations! I don't remember who you're a surrogate for







mummy mush-brain here!

I'm just hanging in, trying to get through the holidays. Not really in the spirit lately. I'm trying but it ain't easy.

Nathanael continues to glow and delight and he's almost in 12 month old clothes now! The lil tyke! Big Brother Tim got a shake and go monster truck (small) for his birthday on Sunday and Nathanael tries to take off after it. He may crawl yet!!

Tomorrow I am officially the mom of a teenager.







We're looking at alternative schools for him because he has a lot of behavioral issues and he's not doing well at school at all. Such a change from my sweetie boy..he's got so much anger and depression. I'm in the process of having him evaluated etc. He doesn't do school work and says when he tries his brain tells him to not do it and he starts to feel sick. He says "I wish I could tell my brain to leave me alone, I can't beat it, I can't win". I feel so sad for him, my Sweetie Lou.

*sigh*

Well off to la-la land....


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

Kitty- Happy Bday to your boy!







: I'll put him in my prayers, it must be so trying for him to do school work.







YaY for Nathanael almost in 12 mos. clothes! Maybe this is inappropriate for me to write (forgive me if it is) but I think that in a lot of ways you are blessed to have a baby with DS. I've heard so many wonderful stories of the huge hearts that people with DS have. I've also heard parents say that they have learned so much from their child and their child's unconditional love for others. IMO (and growing up LDS) I feel that Heavenly Father knew that you and your DH were a couple that could have that very special boy.









My little guy learned how to walk down the stairs yesterday. He wanted to do it, and I think its better I teach him than have him figure it out on his own. However, I am trying to instill in him (at least for now) that MOM needs to walk down in front.

Love, A


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ktmama* 
About a week ago I changed A's nighttime routine so that nursing comes earlier in the routine and I lay her down awake. For the last three nights, I've laid her down, left the room and she's fallen asleep by herself! Now, hopefully, she will be able to get herself back to sleep at least some of the times she wakes in the night. She will, right? Right? Right?









This is how we do it and now most of the time C goes back to sleep if He wakes in the night unless He's sick or something.


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

It was probably a fluke, but she went in the potty! Whee! We were always talking about doing EC (but not really committing), so the potty's been out for ages, and DD has been pointing to it and saying "sss sss!" for months, but still not really using it. Today during naked time, I noticed she was doing the "poo face" so I pointed at the potty and said "do you want to sit on the potty?" and there she went...







Of course, 5 minutes later, she whizzed on the floor, so our elation was short-lived.

We (okay, *I*) got into a bad habit this week. E has been getting up a lot lately because of colds and teething, so she's been spending more time in our bed, which isn't a good thing: we are all very light and very active sleepers, so we stopped co-sleeping around 6 months. Anyway. So the other night, after the 5th trip into comfort her, I thought, sod it, I'll just get in her crib. And it worked-she went back to sleep very easily, I was warm and comfortable while waiting for her to go to sleep...but now she always wants me to come in her crib with her!!! So I had a nap this afternoon this, which wound up being what I needed (but not what my house needed-I am seriously behind in cleaning)! Speaking of cleaning, some of you have much higher standards than I do!!!
Anyway, DH needs the computer, so I should go...have a great weekend, mamas!


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## Aeriane (Apr 4, 2005)

It's totally appropriate! You can't totally lump all kids with downs in one select group but one thing you can count on, for the most part, is their complete innocence and inability to judge or have gile.

I feel Nathanael is the ultimate gift. I love children, I never wanted to say "no more". It broke my heart that he's my last, but my pelvic floor gave out despite tons of exercise..who needs sex when you do kegels 24/7??









ANYWAY.... the Lord graced us with Nathanael and what a gift. I get to have a baby for longer than the usual. I mean he's still in stretchy suits, still eating baby food, though working on big people food, still very much a baby. I needed that. He's also so unconditional, always so loving, cuddly and of all things to understand..he knows when we say "Huggy?" he leans in and snuggles right up.

Who could ask for anything more?

I feel SO very lucky indeed!

I wasn't brought up LDS so I'm still in the learning process. BUT I do know he's an angel sent here to teach and just love us forever. No scruples.

On a sadder front my oldest son got suspended from school today for striking another boy with a thick mead organizer/binder. His dad got him his own cellphone for his birthday and my son was looking up his account online during school computer time, when he's supposed to be doing research. His teacher asked him several times to get on with his work or log off...Finally he pulled Louis off and Louis went into a rage and hit his so called friend because his friend said he was lying about the cell phone and that we're poor (yeah...ok...) so anyway, Louis had burnt all bridges and got sent home while I was at the dr's having Tim looked at for a possible leg break...oh man...

Louis is exhibiting many signs of bi-polar disorder and he's so paranoid/depressed. I'm so sad for my sweety-lou, my teacher, my champion. He's always been on my side no matter what and he's my first so in the world of my parenting, he's been my teacher, my pioneer. A mom couldn't love a son more than I do.

So next week he goes for an evaluation with an alternative school for adolescents, where they get their education, counseling and medicines if need be. Then they eventually get reintegrated back in the schools or they go on to a trade school and earn their high school diploma.

I just want to save him, he's hurting. He can't sleep because he thinks people are going to burn down the house and he has to save Nathanael. He's gotten increasingly violent with my kids (see, Tim at the doctors??) *sigh*

I feel better in that I have a plan set forth and I'm going to help him. I'd do anything for him, anything.


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Kitty, I am so sorry for what you and Louis are going through. I can't even imagine the heartbreak of seeing your boy suffering and wanting to help him but not knowing how.

Forgive me if this suggestion is really, really naive, but have you tried looking into dietary things? Like no artificial colors/sweeteners, or leaky gut syndrome? Have you checked out the special needs forum here for advice?

You have your hands full...you are a very strong woman. ((HUGS))


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Emily...pm'ing you with a question!


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

Kitty, this has to be quick, it's late, but I couldn't read your post without offering some hugs to you and Louis. I know that lots of kids experience mental health challenges with the onset of adolescence. I don't know if you've said so or not, but is he having an eval of some sort? Sounds like this situ could use some sorting out....We are here for you!


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

((hugs)) Kitty. I will keep you and Louis in my prayer. Please let us know how he's doing.

Kate, keep on letting us know how A is doing with nursing earlier and laying down awake. I keep thinking I should try that with Adam but haven't gotten up the resolve/nerve/motivation, etc.







He's still awake when I lay him down, eyes open, etc., but very drowsy after a milk bottle.

Please send some positive energy and prayer my way, mamas. I keep having really bad days with Adam. Apparently our success with a break the other day was an isolated event. We were all three in tears again after I yelled at Adam and grabbed his shoulders today when he whacked Sarah again. It didn't faze her, but after a long day indoors here, I couldn't handle any more and when he did it, I actually yelled at him and actually grabbed his shoulders.







It scared the hell out of him, and out of me. I was scared of my own reaction, and I just want to be a good mom again. We keep having really bad days, and Adam is showing signs of stress: he was hitting his head and pinching himself today for a few moments, and then taking off and trying to pull all the plugs out of the outlets -- a big issue in our house, which is old and poorly wired -- which brought on another round of "No, Adam!" again from me, while nursing Sarah, who was also stressed and kept pulling off and crying.







:


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

_Kate, keep on letting us know how A is doing with nursing earlier and laying down awake._

Night number five of doing this new routine and she's five for five in falling asleep on her own with no crying AT ALL! She seems fine, I'm the one having a hard time listening to her through the monitor talk to herself and her fluffy friends while she drifts off....

At the same time, I decided to eliminate the 2:00 feeding that follows the 2:00 wake up to pee. Although we EC (which is going GREAT!), she simply will not use the potty at night. But, that pee still wakes her and makes her mad! Last night it was simply a matter of holding her for a moment and then laying her down when she was ready. I just ask her, "are you ready to lie down now?". I def feel a shift in the energy. I also noticed yesterday that molar number two has one point that's popped through, so she's much more settled. Not feeding her at 2:00 is helping her sleep until 6:30 instead of 5:00. Interesting....

Emily, don't be too hard on yourself. Awareness is half the battle and it sounds like you are really in tune with your anger and your motivation. This is also a really stressful time of the year on top of it all. Try to be gentle with yourself and don't sweat the small stuff with Adam. Not that outlets are small stuff....((((HUGS))))


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ktmama* 
And I finally gave her a haircut today









What??? A haircut??? Owen barely has any fuzz!!! Let him catch up before y'all start cutting! I can barely make a mohawk in the bath...

Quote:


Originally Posted by *CrunchyClark* 
So....this new babe and she have the same due dates! August 2007 expecting here I am hehehe

Wow Holly!!! Congratulations! How wonderful...great to hear from you!!

Quote:


Originally Posted by *K's Mom!* 
Saturday we're going to drive to the santaclaus house and see santa. Yes, there is a Santa claus house. . That's what happens when you live in North Pole! I should post pics of it. We'll see how C reacts to Santa.

Owen is not too sure about this Santa guy yet. We'll definitely take you up on the letter writing next year, though! How cool that you live in North Pole! I have heard stories about the letter writing with the people there.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *fridgeart* 
Anyway. So the other night, after the 5th trip into comfort her, I thought, sod it, I'll just get in her crib. And it worked-she went back to sleep very easily, I was warm and comfortable while waiting for her to go to sleep...but now she always wants me to come in her crib with her!!!

Wow! Owen's crib would splinter into a million pieces if I even leaned on it. How did you get in there too?? You guys never cease to amaze me!!! I love it!!! Whatever it takes to get the baby to sleep, right?

Kitty...hugs for you and for Louis! I hope the new school turns out to be a good thing. My 11 year old step-daughter scares the crap out of me because I have personal knowledge of how difficult the coming years might be for her. I think we just have to get them (and ourselves) through it in one piece. Let us know how it goes, please.

Emily...would you please just move to Portland, Oregon already? Or at least move next door to any one of us...that gives you a nice geographical range to choose from. This is exactly why it takes a village to raise a child...so mama does not go completely off her rocker!!! Do you have other mamss nearby or are you too rural? I REALLY think that your experience with a new baby and a baby/toddler is ABSOLUTELY NORMAL. My opinion and support don't do much to help you get through it, though







I will be holding "zen mama" thoughts for you!!!

We went on our first real babysitter type date this afternoon. We went to a fancy movie theatre that serves food, etc. We saw the new Will Smith movie, which was really good...but stressful to watch from a parent's point of view. I had a weird anxiety attack as we were leaving the theatre...thinking about Owen and how quickly a secure life can unravel. I had a flash that we were going to get in a car accident on the way home...and we DID (I was not driving)!!! Fortunately it was just a fender bender. We were on the highway and we saw a drunk driver so we avoided him, and I was dialing the police to report it. Then we were sitting at a red light behind the drunk driver, and the guy behind us crashed into us. Good thing I was already on hold with the police when we got in a crash







: Weird, huh? Our necks are a bit sore but the car is just scratched and it wasn't a big deal, just a weird experience. I'm always anxious about leaving the baby...so this isn't going to help







Poor DH...

Well, that's plenty of chatter from me! I hope you're all having a nice and SAFE weekend!

--Adrienne


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

okay - i've got lots of love and hugs to send out to you mamas in need...





















...to kitty, emily, adrienne, anyone i'm forgetting, and anyone that just want some









_"...thinking about Owen and how quickly a secure life can unravel..." - adrienne_

i was tripping out on the same thing the whole drive back up the mountain from reno today. before i left work my coworker came in and said that there was black ice and the roads were awful. her dh was driving down a straight, flat street when a truck went to pass, spun out of control and hit and killed a pedestrian, a little girl. sooo sad. i couldn't get past it. it really is crazy how quickly a secure life can unravel. i prayed and chanted a mantra the whole way home - a 30 minute drive that was 1 1/2 hours today. i'm really not a big fan of I-80 donner pass with black ice and big rigs. it's usually the 4x4s with attitudes that are the ones in the ditches, so i always think if i just go slow that i'll be fine...but it's the other people that really scare me.
we had an abc (alcohol control board) class the other day (my tahoe bartending job-yep, too many jobs, not enough $) and the woman was talking about our responsibility of not sending DUI drivers out on the roads. she brought up a story about a drunk driver who t-boned a car, the 2 yr old ejected and became parapeligic(sp?). her point was that they sued the bartender (drunk driver died) and were awarded 100.4 million dollars. yes, the bartender is f***ed for life, but the point i walked away with again was how quickly a secure life can unravel. and how much i hate bartending. i don't want that kind of responsibility, especially since what if they are a professional drinker and it's really hard to gauge where they are at, and they could have had lord knows how many drinks at every other bar on the mountain and i happen to be at the last stop. arghhh...one day my ayurvedic practice will go off and i'll be able to quit the restaurant business for good. i'm fine with leaving now, but dh isn't fine with that plan. it's only one day and week and $250 that we can't really do without. it's all i could do to convince him that i could only do it one day a week. it really drives me crazy and that is precisely why. i don't need that kind of weight or stress.
these are things i never concerned my brain with before laurel. i know i shouldn't dwell, but it really goes so much deeper these days. she has brought a more compassionate nature out of me, but it's a lot for the head to handle.
sorry...i usually try to be positive and uplifting...it's not generally my nature to dwell on sadness...it's a heavy feeling i'm not very fond of...before i would chalk everything up to karma and god's will and my mind was fine...now i feel things differently...not sure which is better...not sure why i'm







on to you all about it, but thanks for letting me get some stuff of my chest (deep sigh)...i think it helped


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

phew...feeling much better today








just got done bartending, my favorite








i think i'm going to have a nice glass of wine and veg in front of the tele for a few minutes before snuggling into a nice warm bed with the loves of my life...








there's a little piece of paper sitting by the computer that has "charaka samhita" written on it. these are the ancient ayurvedic texts that i have been wanting for what seems like forever, but they are quite a bit of money. dh said he had something really good up his sleeve for christmas and methinks i may have uncovered it...


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Hey guys. Just back from a quick weekend trip to see my Mom and family before the holidays, so very tired and facing mucho laundry, etc. However, I had to post to say I'm thinking about everyone going through tough times -- Emily, Kitty, Adrienne. My thoughts are with you. We're having a few challenges here, too, but nothing in comparison. Hoping Santa finds you and gives you a big hug ...

I'm hoping to post more sometime soon, but I always pop on once a day to catch up on what everyone is up to.

xo


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## K's Mom! (Jul 22, 2004)

Hi Ladies!
Hugs to all the mamas that need it.

*Question:*
What are some meaningful traditions that you have carried on for your dc? What are some traditions that you have left behind?

Anyone celebrate Solstice? What activities do you do to encorporate the return of the sun (which for us is huge since we are currently down to 2.5 hrs. of possible daylight a day!)? We're going to light candles on the 21st and make sunbread and then go for a walk in the dark and talk about the importance of dark and light and why we need both.

We celebrate solstice and christmas; but do the gifting on christmas.

I am just wondering what kind of neat "things" (for lack of a better word







) you and your family do to make the holy -days meaningful and special.

love, A


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Have any of you been to the doc for yourself, by yourself, with dc yet? I did it today - new doc too - whew!

DD is definitely in love with running. She is running everywhere. It's great though.

I'm thinking of trying to let her get herself to sleep as some of you have begun to. I think this will be beneficial to her as she gets older. Of course I'd love her up beforehand.







:

I've been lurking and posting in the TTC forum. I hope to get to post more. I had a real reality check when I was out of my house for a month. I feel like I'm back to what is important. Being DD's caregiver and teacher - what I decided to SAHM for - being creative and using my God-given talents, and talking with like-minded folks. I've been having some TTC issues lately with good old AF. It's been draining and wacky. I went to the doc today, and I will be back on track soon - I have faith of that.








DD looked at me after doing a dirty job today and "uh-oh". Is it time to buy a potty?

DD crying - later.


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

christmas -
half the reason we left pittsburgh was cuz christmas was getting too crazy. MILs, church, moms on xmas eve, then moms, dads, FILs, MILs, grams, back to FILs, other grams on christmas = madness
so now it's just us. i miss the tradition of it all...running down the steps at my dads to see the tree with all the gifts, gramma's delicious cooking, candlelight service with all the carols, family...but it was turning out to be too much with all the divorces and no one accepting no on the invites.
i think i'll take laurel to a candlelight service or christmas nativity play this year. i'm not sure if i want a tree. i think i'll get a little one from the grocery for the dining room table, if at all. once laurel is older we'll definately do the tree tradition. my mom's is covered in all the ornaments all her kids ever made. i can't wait to have the same.
btw - laurel made her first ornament in spanish class last friday!
solstice -
i'm very blessed to be part of a wonderful circle who celebrates solstice. this thursday we are having quite the celebration. one couple is renewing vows, two babies are getting blessed, one dad is getting initiated, and everyone is coming in formal faery finery! i'm looking forward to this party, as our circle is all about fun and joyfulness! we'll do the yule log, glug, and writing new year intentions amongst other solstice traditions.
i'm glad that we can celebrate both, as i love traditions, i love nature, i love the spirit of giving, i love singing christmas carols, i love the general vibe of this time of year!


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

We want to celebrate the solstice this year too. We are thinking about a nightime walk also- maybe drawing or painting some pics of the sun, maybe a cake or cookies, etc. I want to find a couple of stories or fairy talkes to read about the sun , the solstice, etc. Any suggestions?

- Kerri


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

I suggest the book _Circle Round: Raising Children in the Goddess Tradition_ by Starhawk for some great celebration suggestions as well as good stories for each holiday. I would also suggest _The Storyteller's Goddess_ for some good, short goddess stories.


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

I wrote a whole post about how our traditions have changed in the past two years, but then I lost it. Dang. Anyhow, I'll try to revisit that later ... in the meantime, just wanted to say thanks for the frosting!


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## nancy926 (Mar 10, 2003)

Well hi everyone...I'm not around much anymore, but wanted to say hi and say I'm sending good thoughts to those in need....

We celebrate Christmas in a purely secular fashion. The traditions I'm carrying on from my childhood are an advent calendar, lots of Christmas music all month long (which I think drives DH nuts, lol), and making cookies.

New traditions: making a gingerbread house, opening one gift Christmas Eve. Next year I am planning to do Toys for Tots again...I did this for years pre-children but once we had tiny ones it fell by the wayside.

I also write a letter to each of my daughters on New Year's Eve, and seal it in an envelope and put it with their baby book and important papers.

As for Ms. Zoe...she's awesome. She still only says 2 or 3 words ... and really, they all come out sounding like "Daddy", except for her plaintive "Ma-ma!" when she wants me....but she signs up a storm, this kid. Her dexterity is still somewhat lacking but she tries mightily to sign whatever you show to her. She probably has 25 signs, her favorite right now being "milk".

Sigh...she is still in the hardly-sleeps-at-all camp at night. She will go 30-45 minutes between nursings from 8 to midnight, then sleep a couple of hours, then nursenursenurse, then sleep 3 hours or so, then nurse. I'm spent, and DH thinks nightweaning will fix the problem, but I really don't. This age is just so mama-centered, and since I work during the day, night time is prime Momma time. I am going to give it another month and see what happens. She just got all 4 canine teeth so I was hoping that would improve her sleeping patterns...but it hasn't.

Still, she is a joy. She gives kisses and hugs freely, has a huge crooked grin, loves clementines, apple slices and chocolate, and shakes her head for "no" and nods for "yes". For awhile, everything was "no"....then, everything was "yes"...but it appears that now she's figured out the difference.









She's still a peanut....about 31 inches tall and 20-21 lbs. But at least her arms have grown a bit so I don't have to cuff all of her sleeves twice.









She loves music and will dance to just about anything...she also loves putting her sister's underwear on her head, and socks on her hands to make puppets out of them. I am just having a blast with her (except between about 2 am and 3:30 am).

Best wishes to everyone for a wonderful holiday season, however you celebrate.

Nancy


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *nancy926* 
Sigh...she is still in the hardly-sleeps-at-all camp at night. She will go 30-45 minutes between nursings from 8 to midnight, then sleep a couple of hours, then nursenursenurse, then sleep 3 hours or so, then nurse. I'm spent, and DH thinks nightweaning will fix the problem, but I really don't. This age is just so mama-centered, and since I work during the day, night time is prime Momma time. I am going to give it another month and see what happens. She just got all 4 canine teeth so I was hoping that would improve her sleeping patterns...but it hasn't.

I'm a SAHM and Henry STILL sleeps like this. I don't know how you manage with having to go to work during the day. If I can't nap with Henry (i.e., he won't sleep or he sleeps in the car instead) I'm toast!


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Hi ladies, hope everyone is doing well this week!!

This week has been terrible for me starting with the past weekend. Last Saturday, I took out one of my body lotions that I brought a few months back which I haven't used in awhile and thought hey don't want to waste it. Ever since I used that lotion on my face, it gave me an allergic reaction! I seriously look like I stuffed my face into an oven and cooked myself! It's all red, burning and itching ever since Sunday and it's killing me ever so softly!!!







I saw a dermatologist today and she looked at me as if she's saying "ahh the allergic reaction, this is nothing, all you need is some of this cream and vaseline." Problem is, the cream she prescribed is a "Code C" meaning it might not be 100% safe for pregnant women, but she was judging by my horrible face and she thinks yea I definitely need it. If it works, I want it!!

I just want my face back!! *sniff sniff* Like I said I look like I roasted my face in the oven...what a kodak moment this is...My DH is scared of going out with me because others might think he was beating up my face or something.









Hope next week will be better.

Hi Nancy926!! You and me both have a toddler who is 31 inches but 21 lbs!


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *nancy926* 
I also write a letter to each of my daughters on New Year's Eve, and seal it in an envelope and put it with their baby book and important papers.

Awww...that's very sweet and a great idea!


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## henhao (Dec 17, 2004)

Emily -- Sara(h) is gorgeous. Ah, the newborn days.

Adrienne -- If you are having martial spats, then I say go for the childcare. It sounds like you need to nurture you AND your marriage. I don't want to sound nutty but O will prob want you BOTH around and for you BOTH to be happy.

And I want to say kudos for WAHMing for so long with a baby. DH and I lasted only 2 weeks, and we were nearly ground into dust with exhaustion.


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## henhao (Dec 17, 2004)

Emily -- Hugs to you. You've actually been cleaning your house? I ask this in wonder as i stare at a newspaper section, a mug with a swallow of tea from breakfast, some checks, an open container of butter, a bottle of olive oil, baby chalk, some spirulina bottles and a tape measure -- all on my kitchen table.

And do I plan to clean it up?

Nope!

I've had diarrhea for about 2-3 days. I'm weak as heck.

If you get all chance, you all can read this:

http://totville.com/babyblog/2006/12...le-brain-dead/ to see what I've been up to lately.

Soooo tired....

My house is such a mess. I don't like it, but I refuse to work all day and come home and clean all night.







:







:


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## nancy926 (Mar 10, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *New Mama* 
I'm a SAHM and Henry STILL sleeps like this. I don't know how you manage with having to go to work during the day. If I can't nap with Henry (i.e., he won't sleep or he sleeps in the car instead) I'm toast!

Ah, well, I work at home. So I sleep in as long as I can, drink lots of coffee and wear pajamas until noon.







If I had to GO to work, that would, erm, suck.

And we cosleep so I do get more sleep than it sounds like I get. And, I guess my body is just used to it, since my first daughter did the same thing. I still remember her being like 3 weeks old and me having this silly fantasy (that I got from who knows where) that all kids started sleeping through the night around 4 months of age. "I just have to make it through the next few months," I thought to myself. HA! That was four years ago. My older daughter still doesn't sleep through the night...some nights she does, but not all the time. Now, though, she comes and bugs DH when she wakes up.









I hardly know what I will do when I can sleep through the night every night. (No, NOT have another baby, LOL. In fact DH just took care of that last week...so he is kind of walking around like a cowboy right now, lol)

Nancy


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## chiro_kristin (Dec 31, 2004)

Nancy, I'm still in the no-sleep-night camp too. Although it is getting a bit better. A bit. I'm managing to wake up without crawling to the coffee pot. It is definitely hard not being able to nap with him because I have to clean up the house and prep for supper when he sleeps, wrap presents, drink water, do paperwork, etc.

Kitty, I'm so sorry about Louis' struggles.







Big hugs to you both. I know money is a big issue with your family so I hope you can get him the help he needs within your budget. I'll pray for all of you. So glad Nathanael is doing well! I'd love to see some new pictures! Tell your friend on the DS board that you know a great chiropractor (United Chiropractic, 774-2998)









Fridgeart, E pooping in potty! CJ loves to whizz on the floor too, and I've given up caring.

Adrienne, I'm glad you weren't seriously injured in the car accident, although you need to get checked by a chiropractor.







And, um, Emily just had a baby, so maybe YOU had better move! not fair asking her to move with a newborn









Emily, definitely give yourself a break with the house stuff. I know you don't want to yell and grab him, but I don't think it is wrong to let him know you are scared when he hits Sarah. It should upset him when you are scared. That's just my opinion. Would it work at all to wear her more so that maybe he wouldn't hit something that is a part of you? Or would that make him more crazy that you are holding her all the time?

Deb, good to hear from you. Sorry about your hiney.


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## Aeriane (Apr 4, 2005)

I started Louis on melatonin to help him with his sleep. His evaluation is in mid-january so Simon suggested, and I agreed, to start with helping him with his sleep. Well, how great is that? He's sleeping! He's made up with 3 friends he had alienated, he's more cuddly, less violent at home. He's making up school work and even has a C+ in science when he was failing before. He just got things caught up and turned in and I'm SO proud! I'm not saying everything's cured but it's amazingly better.

Parent to Parent of Vermont came today and brought bags and bags of gifts for the kids and boxes of food for us. I was reduced to tears. I couldn't believe it. It was a mix of gratitude and relief and humility. They had asked if they could help with gifts and food for a dinner and I didn't bank on the quantity. I"m still very overwhelmed and humbled.

It's been a roller coaster week, we thought sure Simon'd be working by now as he had some super interviews. Monday was a day of nothing but phone calls with turn downs. I was so depressed. Then Tuesday picked back up with people phoning with interest from reading his resume' in Monster.com. He interviewed with the Dana Farber Institute in Boston, MA today, he's interviewing with the LDS church in Salt Lake City tomorrow, and a big plastics comapny just outside Nashville. etc etc etc. It's such a roller coaster because people read his resume' do the interviews and then he ends up not being offered jobs that seem perfect. It's like what do you have to do to just have a job???? It's like a cruel sick joke.

But, we have been so so blessed and that's what's important. I just wish something work-wise had materialized by now. The banks aren't deferring mortgage payments any more and GMAC isn't deferring car payments anymore. OUCH!!

Meanwhile I've begun being an Herbalife distributor and have started their weightloss products/plan and I've lost nearly 10 lbs since Nov. 18. I would've lost more if I didn't overeat at night due to depression. Nasty old habit that is!!

I'm lovoing it though and it's a great at home business once we get up and running big time.


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## chiro_kristin (Dec 31, 2004)

:








for Aeriane, for melatonin, for the generosity of others, and for interviews!

(did anyone notice that broccoli dances faster than carrot or banana?)


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Kitty,
Yahoo-things are sounding better. My sister's son takes melatonin too and it is like a miracle for him. Isn't Vermont awesome? I am so glad they came and helped you all out this season. It is so nice to know that is out there.

On a completely different note- I got AF just in time for Xmas!! I have been so moody and I have had some wicked achiness in my lower abdomen. What do you know- my period. I have only had one period in like 5 years or something- with all the pregnancy and breast feeding, etc. I feel so out of the loop!

Love, Kerri


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Oh, and I totally forgot. Today was a great day!

I am officially a licensed acupuncturist in the state of NH ( I already hold licensure in VT) Yahoo! I am so excited. Maybe now I can make a little money on the side.
- Kerri


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Congrats and condolences, Kerri!!! You can figure out which one is for which!

Kate: are you there? Snowed in? Anyone else get hit with a bunch of snow?

Owen's latest: dancing on the dining room table...not so adorable. He is also waiting for the phone to ring and then carrying his little chair over to wherever the phone is to try and grab it. It's pretty funny to see a little guy running across the room with his chair!







He's not allowed to have the phone anymore since he managed to dial 911 THREE times!!! I think we could get a fine if he keeps doing it. They gave me a goooood butt-chewing last time. I felt badly. Bad mama...

Kitty...very glad to hear that the melatonin has helped. I hope it continues to provide sleep and improvement for your son.

Gotta work!

--Adrienne


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

_Kate: are you there? Snowed in?_

Doing just fine with our snow drifts and slush (already) here. Got to love CO. It snows sometimes, but then the sun comes out, then the people come out and enjoy the snow. Looking forward to sledding with the girls this weekend while the snow lasts.


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## mommy-X-2 (Oct 23, 2006)

Just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

thanks again for the frosting...i feel so loved







: ...just won't fit in my siggie







without having to follow the new rules







.


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## wsgrl84 (Jan 12, 2006)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Mamas and August toddlers!!

Hope everyone have a *fun* and *safe* holiday and I will "see" you guys in the year 2007!!

I'm very grateful to have shared the last year and more with you guys. You guys are the best group here!









Here's to 2007 mamas!...




























:


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Hey Mamas -- I just had a tiny, tiny piece of downtime and I wanted to pop by and say Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays to my favourite group of women. Hope Santa found everyone and that you are all happy and healthy ...


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

Me too!!! Happy Holidays to everyone - I hope you're all having a relaxing, brilliant day!!! Love to you all!!!


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Merry Christmas!
I thought of all of you today. We had a great day, hope you all did too.
I feel blessed to have all of you in my life.

Love, Kerri


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

Quick downtime moment here. I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday and loving up those babies.







I thought of all of you yesterday after Adam opened one gift and proceeded to play with it and its box for the rest of the day. Hooray for boxes!

Sarah is just taking it all in...and giving great big smiles!

Love to all!

Em


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Merry Christmas... Happy Holidays... Happy New Year!!!

Kerri - Congrats!
EStreetMama - DD loves the phone too. Though hasn't managed to dial 911... yet...









No snow here yet, but it's coooold. Though we have new windows this year, and the house is much warmer. Usually this time of year we are wearing layers indoors and piled under quilts. Now, we're fine in t-shirts and no socks!! Whoo-hoo.

DD's new favorite sounds are "m" sounds... especially "meow", "moo", and "more". She's asking for "wa" and "bites" now too which makes things so much easier to realize what ails her at times. Not to mention it's cute!! She also loves to "weee", which is anything that includes bouncing or sliding etc...

DD has started grabbing her diaper when she dirties and sometimes she'll look at me and say "uh-oh". I know it's a little early to potty train, but how can I take advantage of this for later use?

Okay, I don't want to stir up any arguments - definitely. I would like to ask everyone this question and hope that opinions can be stated without people getting reprimands. I know that can happen on this thread, but in a local group I belong to it went out of hand. So... TV... yes or no? how much? what programs? why did you make that choice for yourself? If no TV, how do you keep DC occupied when something seriously important needs to be accomplished.

I'm a Waldorf mama so I've really felt the pressure not to use TV. I haven't for most of DD's childhood, but my in-laws and parents just don't understand. She's watched it at their house and really enjoyed Sesame Street while we stayed with them the last month. She likes Teletubbies and Veggie Tales. She giggles, dances and interacts with the characters as she watches. So, I've let her watch about 1 hour a day spread out unless it is Sesame Street which is one hour long. I'm feeling guilty though about letting her (maybe unreasonably), and I also feel guilty about taking it from her because she enjoys it so, and I get some things done that need to get done. The TV is unplugged the rest of the day and we are doing things together. What's it like in your home? I need a comparison... I so appreciate all your comments.


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Hi, we don't do t.v., videos, or movies at all here. My kids have never watched a t.v. show and they've never been to a movie theater. I think my older ones have seen a movie related to the book that they read in class in school, but that's it. Having just said never, I do all them to watch a video when they are super sick and are just laying around moaning. Each child has gone through a phase saying: Mommy, moooommmmmy, I'm siiiick. I need to watch a video. But it didn't last that long. I would just prefer that my kids use their imaginations to play and not sit like vegetables.

I'm a little concerned about my babies' speech. Tehila can growl like a dog (thanks dh) and she says 'daga' for dog, but that's about it. Gedalya can also growl, but also says mama, done, doga (dog), what's this, what's that. However, neither baby has added words in a long time.
Does anyone remember what's normal for this age?


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

No TV for Annabelle. Lily gets one video a week - usually an episode of Little House on the Prarie on DVD. G and I do watch TV - usually a movie or two on the weekend and I'll watch some TV a night or so a week from 9 - 10. I have noticed with Lily a real disinterest in video games and computer screen time too since she doesn't watch TV. I've also noticed something wonderful from her not watching commercial TV: she just doesn't WANT anything, probably because she doesn't see commercials. I love it, although it makes buying gifts for her a bit difficult at times!









I think even the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no TV before age two and they're not what I'd call conservative by any standards. From their website:

_The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no more than one to two hours of quality TV and videos a day for older children and no screen time for children under the age of 2._

Rivka, I'm starting to get a bit concerned about the talking thing too, but Annabelle is bilingual and I know that delays spoken language quite a bit. Are your kids bilingual? If not, do they sign? For assessment purposes, signs count as words. Also, do they seem to understand simple commands and questions? Can they shake their heads "yes" and "no"? Have you had their hearing tested? All these are factors to consider before a speech assessment.


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

much to my dismay they are not bilingual. We do use a smattering of foreign words in our home, but they would not know that these words aren't English.
You'd think I'd remember more of this - but college was too long ago - my major ws linguistics.
Gedalya points all day long and during the night and while nursing etc. Tehila maybe points a little.
Gedalya definitely knows what I'm saying - Tehila maybe does - I'll have to focus on her more.







I don't remember any sign (my last child had language delays and still has issues today).
Gedalya can follow simple commands; I'm not sure if Tehila can.

Their hearing is fine. We had quite the hearing test fiasco when they were born.I think Tehila has had one ear infection ever and GEdalya has had, I think, 3. However, he hasn't had any issues since June (when I took myself off of dairy). I did just try dairy two weeks ago and I'm watching Gedalya like a hawk to see if anything happened. I may ask my neighbor to look in his ears and tell me if they look good (he's a dr).


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

No TV here either. Well, we watch. I'm wayyyyyyyy down from where I was pre-Henry; now it's 1 1/2 hours total per week (if Gilmore Girls and The Office are new). And if Henry ever sleeps reliably for a few hours after I get him down at night, maybe I'd watch a movie with DH.

Anyway, you can read about our decison here. So far so good.

As far as language -- Henry doesn't really say much clearly, but he is beginning to say the first sound of a word ("da" for doll, "b" for balloon, etc.). He does about 10-12 signs, though. (And for some reason he can say "salsa"!) I'm not really worried about him. He did lots of physical things early, so I figure it will all even out.

So...did anyone get gifts for their little ones that you've already added to the Goodwill donation pile?







: Henry got a Little People Dinosaur and Caveman toy set -- kind of like this. He also got a talking toy clock that is supposed to teach time in Spanish and English. It's loud and obnoxious and, hello, it says it's for ages three plus.

Not to be ungrateful or anything! He actually got many nice gifts -- a fabric animal bowling set, a wooden ride-on toy, clothes, and magnetic letters with index cards to teach reading (also too old for him, but now packed away for the next few years).

We have a showing tomorrow on our house -- cross your fingers that this couple loves it and just has to have it!


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

My MIL gave the babies two playschool toys: one is 'weebles'? the jack and jill set which contains a see-saw, two weebles, and a well.
Now what on earth are they going to do with that???? (let's not discuss the plastic factor )
The second set has 3 train cars which connect, a polyester or plastic mat, a crossing sign and two shapes which can be loaded into the train. This is the better toy of the two because it can be used in more than one way.
I truly appreciate her efforts in trying to find something for the babies. last time she scored - gave them a wooden busy box which is very nice. She gave my oldest an electronic book? thing that discusses the planets and stars. I just wish it had been a regular book. The other gifts which she sent were all good.
I thanked and rethanked her. I appreciate her efforts - I know it's getting harder for her to go out.
Nothing, but nothing compares to what my mother gave one of the twins...
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j1...resdoll027.jpg
My 8 yr old son is holding it - lookng less than thrilled.


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tikva18* 
Nothing, but nothing compares to what my mother gave one of the twins...
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j1...resdoll027.jpg
My 8 yr old son is holding it - lookng less than thrilled.

What the...?


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

ever feel like you are at a loss for words?

she had told me that she was going to make Tehila a doll. I expected a waldorfy type of doll that she used to make when we were little. THIS was left over from a kit that I had when I was a child (that for some reason I didn't want to do - go figure). All she did was cut out the doll and stuff and sew it. HMMMM. I told dh that I'm taking Tehila to the store and we are going to be picking out the doll that she wants - and I'm looking at Corolle.


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Thanks for the responses. I'm fully aware of the AAP's statements on TV, and I also know that I too want her to use her imagination. So, those of you who do no TV, do you have really clingy DCs that expect you to be their entertainment most of the time? DD is this way. TV like I mentioned above is relatively new in the last 2 months, and still no commercial TV just PBS. Before DD was TV free. Now, I'm to the point where I have to get things done at home. My house is in disarray to the point that it isn't comfortable. I'm also ready for her to learn some independent play. Not that I don't enjoy playing with her, but I do need a break from it sometimes for my own sanity. Any suggestions?

That said, I remember my childhood. It wasn't TV free. I enjoyed Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers, and a few other PBS shows. I was not interested in cartoons. I hated video games, and computers. I played outside all day most days with my slew of imaginary friends. I don't feel like TV hindered me in any way as far as imagination goes. Am I an exception?


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

My kids are definitely not asking me to play w/them. Every once in a while I offer to play, but most of the time they turn me down. The babies are clingy sometimes, but that's normal - i think.


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Eastkygal,
We do a little TV/videos. I have DS1 who is 3 1/2. Emmett watches a little sometimes, but usually moves on after a few minutes. TV viewing is limited and I am choosy. I am OK with most of PBS, that is really the only channel we get anyway. We own like maybe 5 kids movies, but they are obscure cool ones from my childhood ( IMO!! ). We have the Point ( narrated by George Harrison), Milo and Otis ( a slow moving story about a cat and dog narrated slowly by Dudley Moore- it isn't cartoon, but live animals) and a couple of Kipper DVDs, which is pretty slow moving and zen like. I think a relative got us Free to Be You and Me, but we haven't received it yet.
My kids seem to enjoy an occasional viewing- sometimes DS1 and Dh and I have a movie night on Friday with pizza, etc. We all watch together.
It ebbs and flows- many days in a row there will be nothing, just play, etc. Some days we watch a show.
I guess i am not strict about it either way, we just go with the flow. It seems to be working. My kids don't seem obsessed with the boob tube.
The TV is completely hidden away in an armoire and unplugged when not in use. This helps us remember how little we want to use it in our lives.

For me as an adult, I have also gone in and out of TV viewing. I grew up with TV on alot- although we only got CBS and PBS ( no cable, etc ). I lived overseas and was in the Peace Corps as a young adult - no TV at all for a few years. My DH and I had no TV, just a way to play movies on computer when we were back stateside. That is how it is now, but we can get PBS on our little TV.

- Kerri


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

We do a little TV, much to my dismay. Kiernen likes Sesame Street and well, I have "sucker" written across my forehead when it comes to him. He'll pick up the remote and wave it at the TV, then hand it to me asking me to turn it on. He also LOVES Jeopardy. So a little PBS, a little Alex Trebeck. I wanted to keep him TV free, but we watch...I'm conflicted.







:


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Stopping in with a quick note ...

About TV: Tova hasn't watched, and has showed no interest when DS is watching something. He watches or plays on the computer for about an hour a day, so we are not TV-less here. He was probably watching a little bit by the time he was DD's age, and it hasn't hindered his imagination. He is always acting out (and engaging us in) his fantasy play.

Tova also is going through an incredibly clingy phase. I get nothing done except when she is sleeping, and it is very tough. She is taking a few steps on her own, but mostly just wants to drag me (barely holding my finger) everywhere she goes. This started when DH changed jobs two months ago (went from working nights to days) and when she started doing one morning a week at the sitter, in preparation for me returning to work three days a week in early February (that is the only other time I get anything done -- I usually spend the entire two hours folding laundry. Eek).

I know that it is just a stage -- Griffin went through this at a much younger age, actually -- and that it will pass, but it is trying, so I know what you're going through. I take Tova to play groups and see other toddlers playing happily independently, and I just shake my head. Still, she's happy and healthy, so that counts for a lot. If your little one is content to watch a small amount of television, I think it's probably fine. My Mom and I always watched Laverne & Shirley while we ate our dinner (she was a single mom) and, while it seems weird, they are very happy memories for me. I also watched Sesame Street and Mr. Dressup (being Canadian) and some cartoons as a little one, and suffered no ill effects!

I think we should all try not to be so hard on ourselves. Hmmm ... a New Year's resolution, perhaps? Oh yeah, I think I made that one last year.

Hope everyone had a lovely break and enjoyed time with friends and family. Interesting to read about people's gifts -- Tova doesn't play much with "toys" but likes a magnetic farm my sister got her. She also got a soft puppy she likes to snuggle with.

We didn't take too many holiday photos (unusual, for us), but you can see a few of them at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Tova is absolutely GOR!!

- Kerri


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Great pics, Skana! Tova is super GOR!!!

Owen seems more clingy but it's because he wants me to carry him more so he can see what's going on up high. I guess he's bored of the stuff he can reach. He's a climbing fool now. I wish he'd be happier in the Ergo these days, but no...

Here are our Christmas Pics, such as they are. Very limited this year. It was a nut house over at Grandma's! Check out my Buche de Noel. Does anyone else make that? Dang, it's fun to make.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/adrien...4KZCGBYQfqHMkl

Check out Owen's hair in the Alfalfa pics. We can't get his hair to stay down! It's pretty funny!

Take care--I hope you're all getting a break!

--Adrienne


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Owen is so GOR too!
Who are we with all these beautiful children?
Is it coincidence?
I think not.


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Mama Coltrane* 
Owen is so GOR too!
Who are we with all these beautiful children?
Is it coincidence?
I think not.









:


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Sweet photos of Owen! Love the dancing on the table -- so cute!

Further to the TV discussion: Despite his hour of computer/TV per day, Griffin is also a voracious reader, and reads way above his grade level. He's read all of the Harry Potter books multiple times, plus whatever else he can get his hands on. He's also very active in basketball and karate, so it hasn't ruined him. I feel conflicted at times about it, though, even though I grew up on TV (and still managed to play outdoors all the time). I watch hardly anything now -- someone else mentioned The Office? That's the only program I watch each week. I am definitely more likely to be reading than watching the tube.

About the words: Tova still only has a few -- Dada, Mama, Baba (for brother), Nana, moo, duck, up. She seems to understand almost everything we say to her, though, so I'm trying not to worry. DS had very few words until he was 2, then pretty much spoke in complete sentences and was easy to understand. Just taking a wait and see attitude ...

Awaiting more Christmas pics. Cool Bouche Noel, by the way! I do no cooking/baking myself, so I'm very impressed.


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Mama Coltrane and Skana - Thanks for your input as well. I'm still conflicted. If I already new what effect it might have on her, well, I may not be. We don't have cable, but live in the city, so we get 7 channels. PBS is the only one I let her watch, and then, just for 1 hour. I unplug the TV until after she is sleeping. Then, I will watch a show here or there. I too like PBS, My Name is Earl, The Office, and House. I'm usually knitting while watching. I talked with DH about his thoughts on the whole thing. He's an artist who grew up with TV, video games from Atari onward, etc... He is conflicted too, but he said his first drawings were Star Wars characters. Now, then, the question is is that unimaginative and uncreative? I know I enjoyed movies and certain shows as a child. I became really into movies as a teen and I collect them still. I'm a writer of fiction. I had imaginary friends. Maybe I am just putting too much thought in it. DD already does a little pretend play.

I've heard many people say we are not their playmate, we are their mother. I'm trying to do more of the parallel kinds of things. She's got dishes for the kitchen, a broom, mop, and dust pan. Though like Skana said... DD isn't much on most toys. She loves books. Sometimes she will look at them without me, but a lot she wants me to read them to her. This is great, but can get a little much when that is her main daily activity. Then, she loves being outside. We've taken up bellydancing together as well - she loves to run and do this little gallop thing.







: I still want to encourage her independence, and I'm ready for it a little. Watching her play.

Skana - I have heard or read that our babes know way more words than we know they know. Actually, they have said more too. Either we don't understand them, or don't hear them. DD is a talker. I was a talker early on too. My sister and brother were not. They really didn't have a large vocabulary until they were 2 and on. If she seems to understand you, I wouldn't worry about it. Give her some time... I bet she'll come out with it all at once. She just wants to make sure she can say it all right.


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *eastkygal* 
So, those of you who do no TV, do you have really clingy DCs that expect you to be their entertainment most of the time?

Henry is like this. He's always needed lots of one-on-one attention, always wanted to be held a lot, always freaked out if I left him in his crib to go to the bathroom or do whatever. So I feel you. My concern (for myself) is that if I let Henry watch 1/2 hour of PBS, I'll enjoy the quiet and freedom so much that it will eventually turn into hours and hours of TV. It can be very tempting. So I'd rather just do without it at all.

I basically don't get any housework done during the day -- _maybe_ I'll be able to put away a few loads of laundry or empty the dishwasher (while he's in his highchair). And I only just recently started making dinner almost every night -- I just do as much prep work as possible the night before when DH is home, and I often cook up the rest of it with 30-pound Henry on one hip. So my way is not the ideal way as far as running a household goes. But it's what feels right for us, for now.

Also, I guess since I had such a tough time getting pregnant with Henry _and_ he most likely will be our only one _and_ I have the luxury of being a SAHM, I want to spend all my time with him anyway. It goes fast in the scheme of things.

ETA: My DH is also very, very much a partner in running the house and raising Henry, so I do get a lot of help that way. I don't know what I would do otherwise.


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## nancy926 (Mar 10, 2003)

TV....my older daughter is 4. She watches about a video a week (sometimes two) - she picks them out from the library so sometimes they are nature documentaries and sometimes they are Winnie the Pooh or Blue's Clues or the like.

We also have a DVR and have about 30 Doras on there, as well as multiple episodes of Good Eats with Alton Brown. My older DD will watch one of these a day some days, and nothing other days.

Zoe shows almost no interest in watching TV, although the last couple of nights we have been watching Broadway's Lost Performances as a family, and she really seems to like those, particularly the ones from Annie and Cats.







She signs "more" when they are over.









DH and I hardly ever watch TV when the kids are awake. I figure it's like other things - they will model what they see us enjoying. If we are reading, going outside, building things with blocks, etc., that's what they will think of doing first. While I don't believe TV is evil (I watched a ton as a kid and still managed to be a voracious reader and spend oodles of time outside in imaginary play), I would not have it on all day for no reason, or let my kids watch hours of commercial-laden stuff.


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

About TV: Even though my kids don't watch commercial TV and Lily watches one video a week, I too grew up on Sesame Street, Happy Days, Sonny and Cher (OK, I'm dating myself), Gilligan's Island, etc..., but also LOTS of outside, independent play and lots of reading, legos, drawing, imaginary doll play....I seriously do not remember one time of playing with my mom, but I had eight brothers and sisters too. I think the AAP's concern is mostly about TV this young. There is something about TV and how it bombards little developing brains that they think is harmful to babies under two. Also, I think TV now is soooo much more violent and sexual than when we were coming up. I've actually been shocked in reading on the "preteens and teens" forum what MCD mamas and papas let their kids watch







. I really do believe in balance in all things, but most commercial TV is just sooooo scary.

About independent play: For me, having my daily routine really helps me not feel so overwhelmed by Annabelle's activity level (she's SUPER busy) and feel more in control. Kinda like I'm doing *my* day rather than following her lead, although I believe in doing that too. If she really wants to read and I'm preparing food, for example, I'll have her sit on the kitchen floor and turn the pages and then I'll read as she turns. That way, we both get what we want. She is also helping with chores. She will dust along with me, wipe things down in the bathroom (I use just vinegar and baking soda, so it's safe) and she's also unloading the dishwasher. She hands the dishes to me or sis or papa and she's really competent, so nothing broken yet. I also confess to sticking the girls in the shower together when I really need 15 minutes or so to get something done or put up my feet. I always do my daily chore during her nap and eat my lunch at that time so I can have at least one meal to myself. A has a new riding toy that she's happy to ride around on by herself and, truth be told, if I brought her a big pile of clothes she would spend 30 minutes trying them on.

I had what I think is an amazing insight last night. A ate supper at about 6:15 last night, then I nursed her on both sides and she went to sleep about 7:30. She's been waking pretty consistently at about 11:00 and nursing from both sides. I've been convinced that she's starving and have been worried about cutting out that nursing, but I am sooo tired and ready to nightwean. Well (sorry if TMI), last night A threw up :







: at about 11:00 and there was a LOT of food in there - like all of dinner and some of her late afternoon snack. So either she wasn't digesting well yesterday, or she has plenty of food with her still at 11:00 and isn't hungry. So many times I wonder if she's really hungry, you know, or just nursing out of comfort or habit. Now I feel, at least, that I have _information_ rather than just guessing. This is really helpful to me as I go forward this weekend with eliminating that 11:00 nursing. Wish us luck!


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## nancy926 (Mar 10, 2003)

I hope little A is okay! That's kind of eerie because Zoe threw up at about that time last night too. For the first time ever, really. And I was like WOW that's a lot of milk and all of her dinner too.









She has had a bad cough at night and today it sounds deeper and she has a fever, so she and DH are at the dr right now to see if she has some sort of infection. Poor kid coughed so hard last night that it made her sick.


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

so while i was on the phone with one of my interns laurel decided today that her new way of trying to get attention would be to scream at the top of her lungs, over and over. i set her up with playdough, then her baby, then at her piano, then in her highchair with snacks, then on my lap, then on the floor laying down with the boob...all to no avail. she was just wanting attention/stimulation. she pretty much has constant stimulation through the entire day, except for an hour or two when i have to work. the screaming is unacceptable - as i told her. she doesn't care. her needs are not getting met and this is how she has decided to tell me. generally she'll come over and sign food, drink, sleep, book, milk, whatever she wants...i fill the need...and she keeps coming up with more because she just wants my attention. this is fine, but the screaming is not. i have to get things done workwise that involves the phone, the computer, and paperwork that are very hard to involve her with. she helps with cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc., but it's the "boring" stuff that she is rejecting. she wants the attention/stimulation. another example is that i had to take her with me to a patient appointment this week, as well as last. the patient knows and likes her and was aware that this was a necessary part of getting a visit, as the day was not one that i have childcare on, so that wasn't a problem. the problem was that even though there was sooo much for her to do and play with - colors, books, playdough, rocks, food, fountain, etc., she wanted to interrupt the visit with squeals of "give me attention". as soon as she got it, she was fine. apparently this is what she needs - and has been needing since birth. she has never a child to hang out by herself for very long at all. when we visited back east multiple people offered pack-n-plays for us to borrow. i just laughed cuz she _freaks_ if you try to "stifle" (sp?) her like that. she won't sit in the crib and i'm not sure why we even still have it, as it's only purpose is to throw extra pillows in and hold all the books we read to her in the morning and at night. one one hand it would be nice if i could be a sahm, as then i could devote all of my attention to her. on another, i'd go crazy. i'm already devoting the majority of my time to stimulating her little mind, playing, reading, etc. i need to get work done and am having such a hard time figuring out how to do this without upsetting her. i can't afford to have any more childcare. the screaming can't happen. any suggestions?

lovin' the new photos!!!
here's some of our holidays...yay! a piano!...she's squealing with delight upon opening her piano! the ones of her as a fairy are at a solstice party, where she surprisingly left her wings on all night long!


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## EStreetMama (Sep 5, 2003)

Screaming: teach her how to "whisper scream" --basically screaming without her full voice. It will get your attention and you can attend to her, but also not ruin your phone call. I have to do a lot of phone conferences, and I put the mute button on, but I need to listen more than talk. Won't work if you need to talk.

Looking forward to hearing clever ideas from our clever mamas...

TV...Owen watches 5-10 minutes every few days. He likes the theme songs to some PBS shows but loses interest after that. We would ideally have no TV, but ...this is life in America for us. We also have Jeopardy on some nights and sometimes the local news for the weather report. I definitely watch after he goes to bed. My understanding of the recommendation regarding screen time at under 2 years of age has to do with brain development since neurons are still forming.

Yikes, mamas...I had the stomach flu last night. O_M_G!!!! I had a weird fever and I think I was starting to get hypothermic. I could NOT get warm...I had a hat on and the heat cranked and was under a down comforter, a wool blanket and a cotton blanket with a heating pad on my feet and my temp was 94.6! It was bizarre. Ok today...just feel like I was hit by a truck.

Hope you're all well!!!

Love,
Adrienne


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Hey guys -- I posted this on the general toddler thread but didn't get many replies, so thought I'd copy it here:

Anyone else have a fidgety toddler? If anyone has any thoughts, comments or suggestions, I'd love to hear them. DD has always been fidgety (sp?) when she should be calm -- i.e. nursing or rocking off to sleep -- but I thought it would have settled by now (she's 16 months). But no go. During these supposedly relaxing times, she constantly plays with, pulls and pokes my hair, ears, earrings, boobs, etc. It's almost like she can't help herself, like her little hands and feet have just got to keep moving, and it definitely affects her ability to settle down to sleep. Sometimes I still have to swaddle her, when it seems really unsettling. I've tried giving her a "lovey" to handle, but let's just say she didn't love it. Will she outgrow this? Is it normal? Wise mamas, please help ...


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## tikva18 (Dec 21, 2005)

Well, Tehila is my calm toddler (toddler?????? - aren't we still babies?) . She doesn't really fidget that much when nursing to sleep.
Gedalya, however, pats (read hits) my chest while nursing, suddenly rips off and points to the ceiling fan and says: what's that? what's that? he's always twisting around looking for something else. I tend to hold his arm down while nursing after he hits a certain point of sleepiness, just so he can drift off - however, I let him pat, point, question, and whatever else, until then.
I think that it's normal. Each baby will have their own normal - just like I can hold still and my dh can't.


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## eastkygal (Feb 19, 2006)

Thanks again ladies for the replies! I'm in the same boat as many of you really with how I see it. I'm still trying to make that final decision.

One thing that really influences my decision is one DC I know well. He loves TV and video games. He's really sweet and a very smart, imaginative child. He is 6. Lately, his mother has had a problem with him urinating on the sofa while playing video games. He just doesn't go. She said he gets this weird trance-like look on his face when he's about to do it. Now, that is worrisome. She does limit his time to a couple of hours on weekdays, but Saturdays are devotes to this. She says it is what he enjoys to do.

riverrundine and others - Though I am a SAHM, I am also working on the independent playing time for DD. I feel like I need the time, and it will benefit her. I love my time for her! I am also a very introverted writer type YKWIM and I find myself becoming impatient if I don't have a calm hour to myself during the day aside from my time after she is asleep. I really need to work on becoming aware of how we spend our time hour by hour and see if I'm expecting too much. I know this time is fleeting and... I don't want to miss a thing.







I also want to work on night weaning. I know she isn't hungry at night, and I definitely know she nurses to sleep. Any suggestions on how to help her self soothe. She sucks her thumb and twirls her hair during the day, but for sleep or nap that doesn't cut it.

Thanks for the suggestions ktmama!


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## hopefulfaith (Mar 28, 2005)

Must go to sleeeeeep....but I wanted to pop on and say hi. I lurk nearly daily, but hardly ever have the time or a free hand these days to type! I miss that!

Christmas was awesome here -- we went down to my mom's house for a week, came back this morning (drove thru the night ... makes such a difference!). I am so excited -- my mom and her long-time bf got married! So happy for them!







They married in Vegas, which we got some serious mileage teasing them about, but they're quite happy -- and therefore, so is the rest of the family!

Okay, Rivka, that doll is....something else! But let me chime in here with MY funky Goodwill gift! Sarah received a "My First Briefcase". Seriously. It comes with a cell phone, watch, calculator, and keys. Huh!?!?!?!

Uh oh - Adam crying -- going now. Hopefully back tomorrow! Love to all.


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## Aeriane (Apr 4, 2005)

Well our Christmas was humbling to say the least. Being the recipient is kind of hard. Well anyway after my older kids got back from their Dad's we went to my Mom's about 1.5 hours from here, had our family christmas lunch/dinner and presents. Then we came home and had snacks and presents. It was kind of odd watching kids open gifts not knowing what they're getting. Kind of fun too!!

Well any blessings we have received are somehow being offset by bad luck. My washing machine broke on Christmas day. With this brood it's a minor disaster. My husband left for the Boston area Wednesday for two interviews, one at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and one at Hart Associates, a medical billing company. He then went up to the Portland Maine area to touch base with some people there about a job and while on the highway his motor seized in his car. He's now in Maine, crying his heart out, feeling like he just can't take any more. He lost everything once before, he had lost his wife, his house, kids alienated him..everything. Now he's lost his job, his car, loosing his house...etc. He's just so depressed. I am too but since I'm on meds for depression I manage to keep my head above water. I've had it hard many many times before so it sux but it's more of the same.

So tomorrow is trying to find a way to get hubby home, my older kids go to their Dad's in the afternoon so I'm not free to just head off to Maine. Meanwhile we have NO money.

UGH!!!!!

Anyone got a used washer box we can live in????

man it sux but what can you do???

Nathanael manages to be the most beautiful child in the world, just full of delight. Teething like mad!! He doesn't get too much Mommy time lately. I'm hand washing wash in the sink, squeezing it out with a mop bucket wringer and baking homemade bread, feeling all like I should have a big old apron on and stirring up the kettle over the fire and chopping wood with a baby tied to my side!!!! LOL Sooo coloniel!!

eh anyway. Nathanael's still commando crawling, not truly crawling BUT doing it faster. He whips around here room to room pretty quickly.

About TV watching? I tend to let the kids watch more than I should but try to stick to educational. I knwo I'm bad..but not illegal last I knew!!

My son Louis went through a violent rage here today...he just went all depressed like and spiraled downhill, beating on his sisters, stuffing one down the crack of the couch and jumping up and down on her trying to sufficate her. I ripped him off and demanded he go to his room. He threw things and screamed like mad then took the melatonin and was out in seconds. I'm calling for help tomorrow if this continues. He was kind of bored all day, restless and then it just went out of control. He was yelling how I don't love him, etc etc I'm like where did THAT come from??? He said "YOU WON"T LET ME IN YOUR CAR ALONE!!" I said, because someone opened my touch-up paint and spilled it in the car. Someone's sniffing out there and I don't want ANYONE in my car alone. A hermetically sealed paint tube doesn't open itself!!!!

Anyway....I'll stop. It's just very very trying time for me ladies and I feel so alone







I used to drink heavily over things a lot less worse than this so I'm proud I'm managing to keep it all together. Wish me well!!!


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

Kitty - wish we were all there to offer you respite, childcare and your hubby a ride home, in addition to whatever other support you need. I'm sooooo sorry you are going through such a hard time right now. (((((HUGS))))).


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

Kitty....







:


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

(((Kitty)))


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

_I hope little A is okay! That's kind of eerie because Zoe threw up at about that time last night too. For the first time ever, really. And I was like WOW that's a lot of milk and all of her dinner too._

Thanks, Nancy. One day of non-stop nursing seemed to cure whatever was ailing her. How is Zoe doing?

Jeremy - no real advice on the screaming. That is something I tend to ignore, but that's not really doable for you while you're on the phone or with a client....Most I can do is offer hugs, I think.


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## riverundine (Oct 26, 2005)

Kitty, I'm hoping the New Year brings only wonderful things to you and your family
















New Mama - this quote from your blog -
_Being a stay-at-home mom to a toddler is like constantly putting out fires but never having the chance to clean up the smoldering remains._
-really made me chuckle this morning. Thanks


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

Kitty: Thinking of you and wishing we were all closer, as PP said. Hoping things will be looking up for you in 2007. xoxo


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## quelindo (May 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *riverundine* 
New Mama - this quote from your blog -
_Being a stay-at-home mom to a toddler is like constantly putting out fires but never having the chance to clean up the smoldering remains._
-really made me chuckle this morning. Thanks


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## mtnsunshinemama (Sep 21, 2004)

Hi Ladies!
Just popping in to say hello and almost Happy New Year! We are finally home for awhile and happy to be here and snuggling in front of the fire! We had so much fun in Mexico!
And followed it up with an altogether different beach experience over the holidays. We missed being with our friends over Solstice, so we decided to share it with our unsuspecting family- the kids loved it! In addition to Circle Round, that someone mentioned we also like " Celebrating the Great Mother" for ideas on creating rituals! Beautiful Yule Log Cake that Adrienne made!!

Our Christmas at the coast was pretty mellow too, although we learned we won't plan on spending it with my sisters' kids in the future! August was way into his cousins sword but they all wanted to ride his motorcycle!

No time to catch up on the thread now, but wanted to send hugs and blessings to Kitty! more later nak..

eta-Forgot to say August finally started walking Dec.22 at the coast trying to keep up with his cousins!! Yippee!


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## Surfer Rosa (Jun 3, 2005)

Kitty, hugs to you and your family-I really hope 2007 brings you guys a much better year!!!

We're back from our family xmas, E did so well with all the changes in routines and overstimulation, long car trips and all the madness of the season. Other than the rush of the 24/25/26th, we had a week to relax as a family and just be together. DH is off til next Wednesday, and it is so nice to have time together. My mom babysat for us a couple of nights, and we went out and had so much fun-I kind of forgot how funny and sweet he could be! We really needed some time to hang out like this--and swore to make it happen at least once a month, even though we think we can't afford a babysitter/night out/etc.

E received waaay too much-we had to space out the gift opening over the course of the week so that she could appreciate it all. I'm glad I'm not the only one who's set aside some gifts for retuning/donating!







DH thinks I am somewhat ungrateful--which isn't true--I totally appreciate the sentiment of gifts, I just don't think a book about make-up is appropriate for a 16 month old, nor is a toy cellphone, nor "I'm a princess" t-shirts (!!!!)...luckily, most of them can be returned without anyone knowing (the beauty of living 5 hours away). By and far the gifts she received were fantastic though-lots of imaginative play stuff, which she's totally into, and mostly natural materials. Yay! We got her some PlanToys stuff which is soooo fun.

About TV, we haven't had it on with her around, except for very very rare occasions (ie a bit of the FIFA world cup in the summer-DH is a huge fan), but she shows zero interest. If we do let her (not til she's 3 or so) it will be commercial free (ie PBS, TVO-Canadian equivalent). Some of my friends who allow their kids to watch tv sit down and watch with their kids, and talk about what's happening to keep them engaged. I think it's a great idea, but it doesn't really help with getting things done around the house! We watch some tv, but only after E is in bed-and a lot less than we used to. I was a tv junkie as a kid, but also an avid reader (still am), and into art (still am!) and playing outside.

skana-E can be the same. Sometimes she'll be nursing to sleep, and clapping her feet together, poking my face, popping off to point to random things and name them, sing, twist around and babble at the wall...but then she just crashes. (Although sometimes she is still spun when I put her down-but she plays in her crib quite happily with her doll til she drops off). It seems like a sort of manic finish line burst of energy that just finishes her. Is Tova the same?

riverundine-E does the same as soon as I'm on the phone (Well, that or she gets into something she's not supposed to, all the while looking at me with an evil grin on her face-she knows she's being bad). I haven't come up with much other than keeping my calls short, lol, but it has been getting better lately. I usually can find something complicated to keep her occupied (she is really into dressing herself right now, so sometimes I pull off her socks/shoes and ask her to put them on). A friend of mine has a little basket of toys that she only pulls out when she's on the phone-she swears by this. GL!

About independent play-E is totally into this. She'll play with her little farm or castle or blocks quite happily for 10-20 minutes, with little direction. I have an easel set up for her with some chalk and drawing stuff, and she'll go there throughout the day and play for 5-10 minutes, drawing and wiping off the chalkboard (she is very adamant about cleaning up). I didn't set out to build it into our routine, but it does allow me some time to do little maintenance things like sweep the floors, make dinner, etc. I realized I was really stressing about being her playmate all the time--so I decided to let her take control of more of the play, kwim?

Anyway, it's been a long day but I wanted to check in and catch up. I'll try to post some pics soon. I'm so glad I found this board-this is such a lovely group! Yay, us! And I hope 2007 is sweet and wonderful for us all. Cheers!


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## Aeriane (Apr 4, 2005)

Tracy? I seem to always have these mixed feelings about you!! I go from being jealous of your lifestyle, how you just pack up babe and all and enjoy the great outdoors. I seem to have lost that around kid 3 or 4... Then there's this total and complete fascination with how much you DIG each other. It's sexy!!

Then you just travel, see the world, seize the day. Such an inspiration. I don't know how you do it all? HOw you afford it? etc...

The end result..I live vicariously through your photos!!









You are so lucky and so blessed.

on the home front? My husband pulled in tonight with this 16' uhaul hauling his car. Thank GOD. FINALLY!!!

Now, just praying to God that life turns around for us in 2007 before we become some trolls livin' under a bridge.......







:


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## skana (Jun 29, 2005)

_About independent play: For me, having my daily routine really helps me not feel so overwhelmed by Annabelle's activity level (she's SUPER busy) and feel more in control. Kinda like I'm doing *my* day rather than following her lead, although I believe in doing that too. If she really wants to read and I'm preparing food, for example, I'll have her sit on the kitchen floor and turn the pages and then I'll read as she turns. That way, we both get what we want. She is also helping with chores. She will dust along with me, wipe things down in the bathroom (I use just vinegar and baking soda, so it's safe) and she's also unloading the dishwasher. She hands the dishes to me or sis or papa and she's really competent, so nothing broken yet. I also confess to sticking the girls in the shower together when I really need 15 minutes or so to get something done or put up my feet. I always do my daily chore during her nap and eat my lunch at that time so I can have at least one meal to myself. A has a new riding toy that she's happy to ride around on by herself and, truth be told, if I brought her a big pile of clothes she would spend 30 minutes trying them on._

Kate: I am so jealous. There is no way Tova would/could do any of those things. The only way (mostly) that she'll sit on the floor and play is if I'm sitting right beside her. She is still very babyish in most ways -- I can't imagine her pretending to clean or unloading the d/w. Anyway, she's so obsessed with walking right now that we barely sit down. She can walk on her own, but she wants to go fast, so mostly holds my finger and runs, runs, runs. If I try to disentangle myself (mostly), she wails. I know this too shall pass. Repeat, repeat.

_E can be the same. Sometimes she'll be nursing to sleep, and clapping her feet together, poking my face, popping off to point to random things and name them, sing, twist around and babble at the wall...but then she just crashes. (Although sometimes she is still spun when I put her down-but she plays in her crib quite happily with her doll til she drops off). It seems like a sort of manic finish line burst of energy that just finishes her. Is Tova the same?_

Fridgeart: Tova doesn't so much crash as run out of steam ... eventually. If she's not asleep when I put her down these days, she cries. She's gone through phases where she would talk/play herself to sleep but that disappeared when the clingy-ness set in about two months ago. It is definitely a manic burst of energy. I just wish she was able to relax more -- although I have a tough time with that myself, so guess she comes by it naturally. LOL

Kitty: glad your hubby is home. Here's to good things to come!


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## ktmama (Jan 21, 2004)

Skana - A has been through that fidgety thing (especially while nursing) too. Some things that have helped us are to 1. Change positions. I find that she fidgets and pulls away less (owwwww!) if she nurses facing me and straddling my waist. This way I can 2. Rub or scratch her back which relaxes her a bit and we've had success with 3. A lovey and/or a blanket wrapped around her shoulders and arms and 4. Limits. If she's hitting, poking my eyes, kicking, etc, I will unlatch her and tell her we can nurse some more when she's calmer.

Also, have you tried essential oils or a bit of chamomile tea before? Might help.

HTH and hope things settle down for the two of you in this area.


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## mtnsunshinemama (Sep 21, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Aeriane* 
Tracy? I seem to always have these mixed feelings about you!! I go from being jealous of your lifestyle, how you just pack up babe and all and enjoy the great outdoors. I seem to have lost that around kid 3 or 4... Then there's this total and complete fascination with how much you DIG each other. It's sexy!!

Then you just travel, see the world, seize the day. Such an inspiration. I don't know how you do it all? HOw you afford it? etc...

The end result..I live vicariously through your photos!!









You are so lucky and so blessed.

on the home front? My husband pulled in tonight with this 16' uhaul hauling his car. Thank GOD. FINALLY!!!

Now, just praying to God that life turns around for us in 2007 before we become some trolls livin' under a bridge.......







:

Kitty, Sooo glad your husband is home safe and sound! And all the best wishes that things turn around for you and your family this year!

You're right, we are lucky and blessed and we know it!














:
We are in love with life and each other! We are still honeymooning, really. Just married 2 1/2 years ago, the Mexico trip was a honeymoon/celebration for DH's book that he actually hasn't finished. I waited until I found my soulmate at age 36 to marry, after we both had done a lot of living and personal work. I think that's why we have the magical and quality relationship we do. We also work to keep it healthy and strong!

We have both always loved to travel and explore, and that's part of what keeps things dynamic for us! It is our lifestyle and is a priority for us, which means other things are not! We are not rich by any means, Dh is an associate professor and I'm a part-time acupuncturist, both with school loans- and most of the time we just barely get by financially. We have a small house, get lots of our clothes and toys etc. used, eat simply and have lots of half-done projects around the house!

But we're enjoying the ride! I can see how packing up a bunch of kids would be difficult, for sure! We're still going back and forth on whether to have a second, but I think we'll start TTC before too long.

I bow down in praise and awe to you, Kitty







at how you manage all you do with your family and the tough times you're navigating! I'm taking notes!!

And lest you think it's all peaches and cream around here, we did manage to bring, ugh, I can barely bring myself to say it, hookworm back from Mexico. Luckily, I think we're all about over it now!


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## Mama Coltrane (Sep 30, 2004)

Great pics tracy! Yahoo for August walking!!

Kitty, I hope things are improving now that Dad is home. I wish we lived closer, but Northern VT is still pretty far in the winter. Do you often get down to Corinth to visit your Sis?

- Kerri


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## chasmyn (Feb 23, 2004)

New year, new thread!!!

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=586094


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