April Wobblers

[lisas3575]

We were a quiet bunch last month! Hope everyone is doing well.

Owen is 16 months this week! He walks 95% of the time now and has (I think) all his teeth. He's been Cap'n Crabby this week for some reason-- whiny, and everything is a disaster that warrants gallons of tears and sobs. :rolleyes: Nice. Hoping it's just a brief phase and that he's not sick again. His excema is under control at the moment-- not sure if it's the Cetaphil that we've been putting on, limiting him to one bath a week, or going off of PB, but I'm glad he's not so miserable and blotchy. He's even mostly bruise- and scratch-free at the moment!

Owen's daycare sent a note home yesterday that we need to send sunscreen and a sun hat for him since the weather is starting to get a little nicer. What brand of sunscreen do you like? I used Arbonne last summer, but it's spendy and almost expired.

He is very anti-hat, which bites since he has no hair. Any suggestions for a hat that he can't pull off? The best I've come up with is a hoodie, but it's not perfect and does nothing for keeping the sun off his face. The Dr. wants him to wear sunglasses and it was all I could do to not laugh in her face about that one! Good freakin luck!

[DanaSD]

me, Dana 36
DH, 35 (only for 2 more weeks though, :) )
DS, Brendan 15 months

This is a fun age because he's learning so much and starting to communicate more. BUT he's also throwing a lot of temper tantrums. I try to explain to things to him (like we'll be leaving soon), have transitions (its time to clean up and then we'll go eat, bed, etc) and try to figure out what he wants (he's gotten good at taking my hand and bringing me somewhere in the house to show me what he wants) so that helps. But we still have a lot of fits and they're mostly when I take away things that he shouldn't have and when I take away things because he's acting up (usually because he's tired).

excema comes and goes and right now its back. We do baths every 2-3 days (he gets so dirty outside that he needs it and could use more) and use lots of lotion. The dr said to wait on allergy testing until age 2.

we use the aveeno sunscreen for babies. Brendan actually wears his hats - he's always hated hats but since its been warmer out I've put a new hat on him and he wears it. Im not sure if its the hat or he recently decided it was ok to wear hats. Its the gap denim hat with the strap. It is loose on him compared to his winter hat and baseball caps so maybe thats why he wears it.

Brendan only gain 4 ounces since his 1 year visit so he's 25 pounds 4 ounces. He has cut back in his eating (instead of the 40 ounces of formula/day) and he is sooooo active never stopping. They gave a percentile of 50-75 which I thought was strange to have a range. Height - they said he measured the same as 1 year which I know isn't accurate. We measured him at home and he grew 2 inches plus it was noticable so that we had to turn his carseat forward because his legs got so long. But when they were measuring him he was screaming and twisting and they marked lines on the paper.

still only 6 teeth but definate signs of teething.

[LaraW]

Re: sunscreen- I use the spray-on Waterbabies SPF 50 for both kids and neither have ever had a sunburn. We're working on getting Colin to wear a hat too, just b/c he has no hair. I don't have much advice except to keep trying. I got a kind of floppy beach hat looking thing with a chin strap, but he gets past that quickly. I used those kinds of hats for Natalie too when she was a baby and they worked well, but maybe she enjoyed the fashion statement more ;) I'd say to just keep at it, and try to keep him in the shade as much as you can.

Can you put sunscreen on his head? :o

We've had a rough week at our house. I got the flu last week and gave it to both kids. We figured out what it was too late for Natalie or I to get the tamiflu, but when Colin was coming down with it, we knew what it was and got him started on the tamiflu. It is working well, though I have to wrestle it into his mouth every time. It tastes nasty. I took it back to the pharmacy yesterday and the pharmacist added in some flavoring, which has helped moderately. His dosage is only 1/2 teaspoon, and I have to divide it into 3rds and give it to him bit by bit.

Still not walking but I've seen a lot of progress in the last week - standing on his own, trying to move his feet when he's standing, etc. Then he got sick and he hasn't been doing as much but I'm sure once he's feeling better he will get back to doing more.

[JanetJ]

Lisa, I don't understand the sunglasses either! We got Maya a pair and they work great for her to chew on, but I don't think they have stayed in place longer than 2.5 seconds. We are also anti-hat here, so I look forward to other's having any suggestions. We used Waterbabies sunscreen last summer and it was fine, but I have never tried anything else.

Maya is coming up on 14 months and all is well. She started saying "dog" this last week and sometimes we get something that kinda sounds like "balloon" and I think "no" will be along any day. So the language thing that I was somewhat concerned about last month is coming along. She is just a lot of fun and so social. We are headed to CA in a few weeks to see DH's parents and am nervous for the flight but excited for them to see her.

[ggs830]

Happy April!!

Me: Gouri, 31
DH: 31
DD: Shaelyn, 15 months
DS (finally here!!): Jahan, 1 week

Obviously, our biggest challenge for the month is going to be adjusting to a newborn in the house. My poor baby girl, she doesn't know what's going on. When we first came home, she was initially very curious, which quickly turned to indifference after she realized that the baby didn't do anything. After a few days, I think she realized that this little guy is here to stay, and that he monopolizes alot of mommy's time, and she started acting out, i.e. full blown temper tantrums. On top of it all, she somehow acquired a horrid cough and cold (as though we didn't have enough on our hands with a newborn :rolleyes: ), and her sleep has been screwy since last week. As a result, we have had an extremely cranky, whiny, and fussy little girl on our hands. I posted in the New Moms thread about how guilty I feel-- maybe it's the baby blues talking, but I can't believe how much my heart hurts everytime Shaelyn starts to cry because I'm holding or nursing the baby. It's gotten so that I can't nurse in front of her-- if I do, she tries to push the baby out of the way, and lay her head against my chest. :( Poor baby.

The good news is that she hasn't taken any of her frustration out on the baby, and has actually been rather sweet towards him. She keeps trying to give him her favorite blankie, and yesterday, after she watched me rock the bouncer with my foot to get Jahan to sleep, I caught her trying to do the same. So cute! So, hopefully, this adjustment period won't be too long.

In other news, we had our 15 month WBV on Monday, and everything looks good. She's in the 10 percentile for weight (20lb 11 oz), and 75th for height (31 inches), so she's long and lean, just like me at her age.

Shaelyn's walking (or running) like a champ now, and her communication skills are starting to explode. We are signing with her, and everyday she starts using a new sign. Just yesterday she started signing "cracker". I've noticed that when someone talks to her, she stares at their hands first to see if they are going to sign something to her, so we have been very diligent about using signs when appropriate, and that has definitely paid off. Her vocabulary is still pretty limited to "mama," "dada," and "baby," (although she babbles non-stop), but the doctor wasn't very concerned about it, so I'm not either.

I meant to talk to the doctor about this, but forgot-- are you guys giving your little ones a multi-vitamin? What brand?

Anyways, I think the baby is waking up from a nap-- need to go feed him!

[DanaSD]

congrats Gouri. I just can't imagine having 2 right now and going through that first 6 months again but it will get easier and it will be great having them so close in age.

I asked the doctor if we could use a multi vitamin since Brendan's diet is so limited and they said no. Not until they're at least 2. Dr. was happy that Brendan drinks milk and eats fruit and said not to worry if he's not eating anything else - just to keep offering.

we've had signs of teething for the last few weeks and they've been worse than with his first few teeth. I just noticed that it looks like his molars are coming in so that explains it. But he only has 6 teeth in the front (4 on top, 2 on bottom) - he's going to look funny with these huge gaps.

[hrk]

Good morning all
I think this is where Ari and I belong.
Me: Heather, 33
DH: 34 today :D
DS#1 Logan 4 in May
DS#2 13 months

Ari is almost 13 months and is doing very well, minus the fever he spiked this morning. But he has no other symptoms, so I am guessingg we will see more teeth in a day or two. He has been working on his two bottom molars, so they might be what we see next. He takes about 5-6 steps at a time and then drops to his knees so we are in the intermediate stage between walking and crawling. He is also talking up a storm and will repeat almost everything we say. He loves to point at something and say "look", he says dog whenever he sees our dog appear. And he will try just about anything we put in front of him. At last night's passover seder he ate 1 1/2 matzoh balls and loved them.

As for the multivitamin, I think we will soon switch Ari from the PolyViSol to Gummie Vitamins- I think Little Critters is the one we used with Logan, but Flintstones also makes a gummie now. Our ped told us the gummies are better formulated for toddlers than the chewables, which we found to be true and Logan really liked them.

With the sunscreen we use Baby Blanket. It is a 50+ sunblock. The biggest thing to make sure of is if the sunblock has titanium dioxide or zinc oxide cause that makes them sunblocks instead of sunscreens. As a matter of fact DH and I are so fair and burn so easily we use it as well.

Lisa- Don't worry in the least about the hat or sunglasses. They will not stay on. We just rub sunscreen on Ari's head/hair and go with that.

Lara- Hope you all are feeling better.

Hope everyone has a great week and our sick babies start feeling better.
Heather

[magdon]

Dash (13 months) actually seems to tolerate hats better without a chin strap. they come off eventually but he'll leave them on for a bit. oops naptime is over

[lisas3575]

Thanks for the sunscreen and hat tips everyone. I picked up some Aveeno sunblock and used it today on our walk. It was beautiful here today! :)

Is anyone else regressing in the nap department? For the last 3 weeks or so, Owen is wanting (and sometimes getting) two naps a day again. He's cranky from when he wakes up until I cave and put him to bed 2 hours later, where he'll sleep for 90 minutes! He's still taking his afternoon nap, too, for about the same length. Today he fell asleep in the car running errands (he never does that), and then slept for 4 hours this afternoon (also never does that!). I'm chalking it up to a growth spurt, though he's not really eating more than usual, and our food challenges are continuing. Just curious if this is common or not-- clearly he needs a little extra sleep now for some reason and I'm happy to help facilitate that. ;)

[gertdog]

Lisa, I don't know how common it is, but I know Ryan has switched from 2 to 1 and back to 2 naps a few times now. Until about two weeks ago he was taking 2 a day; now we're back to 1 longer afternoon nap.

We're off to CA in the morning- a nice 5.5 hour nonstop flight. I hope he's as well-behaved on this one as he's been previously!

[lisas3575]

Good luck on the trip, Stephanie! I stand in awe of your frequent flier miles with a toddler. :)

[DanaSD]

Happy Easter everyone! we had a fun Easter morning - Brendan collected all his eggs and loved his easter basket that had some fun new toys in it (coloring book and crayons, Thomas, spikey ball, sand toys, basket ball hoop for the bath). I had to include the funny picture of him wearing his basket.

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h61/danavbrown/easter1.jpg

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h61/danavbrown/easter5-1.jpg

sorry the picture is so big - I resized it in photobucket but its still showing up large.

[JanetJ]

Dana, I love the pictures! I'm glad Brendan enjoyed the day and his basket! :)

We also had a good Easter. With DH and I different religions we have come up with our own way to celebrate Easter as a family and it was great to do so with Maya being much more of an active participant than she was last year (at only 6 or 7 weeks old). Yesterday we had a big family dinner with my dad's side of the family. With close to 40 people in a not-large house it was a bit overwhelming for her at first, but she was the life of the party once she got comfortable. Today we had brunch at my mom's house and relaxed. She didn't seem to be too interested in the eggs my mom had "hidden" for her, but she was a fan of her basket. She doesn't look too happy in the picture below, but I thought it was kinda cute. We call it "Dad, I'm tired of you following me around with the camera. I'm trying to play!"

http://images.kodakgallery.com/photos3372/4/47/91/28/13/3/313289147403_0_ALB.jpg

[mst]

Hi everyone! Sorry I am not the best participant recently, I find it hard to find the time to read and respond! So, mostly, I am a lurker.

Lisa- I hope you were not offended by my peanut butter thoughts from last month.

Dana- Cute pictures. How is your business coming?

Janet- I love Maya's hair! I put Ilyssa's hair in pigtails today- you would think I was torturing her. But, once they were in, she couldn't stop looking in the mirror and smiling at herself. (But, they are making me a little crazy because they are so uneven. What can you do?)

Stephanie- hope your flights went well.

As for the naps- I call Ilyssa, "she-who-does-not-believe-in-naps". I get about 45 minutes total.

As for us, Ilyssa is pulling up and cruising more and more. She is still not near walking, but she is making progress, which is nice. We are going to the Gastroenterlogist on Friday, so I am hoping we will get a new plan. It was sad that I made this enormous Passover dinner, and Ilyssa could not eat anything. But, on the upside, we went out with NewMrsG and her family on Saturday, and I actually fed Ilyssa restaurant food! We had to talk to the manager, and he was super sweet and brought the food over to us to insure us that it was not cooked in butter. It was simple food- roast beef and steamed veggies, but it was so very exciting for us.

Oops- I have to run- hi to everyone else! Welcome Heather.

[DanaSD]

mst - great to hear from you. There's an adorable little girl in our playgroup who just started to walk. She's the oldest in the group (maybe 18 months?) and she just started and her walking is perfect and she can walk long distances. Its like she just waited until she was ready and now she's ready. Whereas Brendan started early and he was so wobbly and took many head dives for months. This little girl is also so proud of herself and she has the most incredible smile on her face when she walks and then she goves you this look and wave - kind of a look at me. She's a big kid, too off the charts for weight and height.

Business is going ok. Lots of interests and I've requests for orders already (had to turn them down since I'm not open yet) and even a shop that wants to sell my products. There's so much to do and learn with starting a business. The biggest challenge is finding a kitchen space - I have a potential but I have some concerns with it so I may pass on it. I am getting involved with the small business association and SCORE to get some help. Its hard because I'm trying to start the business but I want it to be a less than full time job - if I wanted it to be a huge business I would lease my own space. But I've done the 40+ hour job and DH works a lot and Brendan is my priority right now. The last 2 weeks I've gotten distracted and spending a lot of time with Brendan and getting very invovled with my MOMs club. I have the blog (see link in my siggie) for anyone who wants to follow the business but mostly its just been pictures of chocolates (product development and portfolio building). I'm hoping to get my Easter chocolates posted today. There is a little poll going if anyone want to vote!

proud momma moment. We've been working on hand holding during walks especially when crossing the street. The other day as we're going out for a walk Brendan runs out the door and down the walkway and stops at the sidewalk and puts his arm up for me to hold his hand so that we can cross the street. :)

[LaraW]

Dana, that is great that your business seems to be coming along.

Well, this mornign I had to run some stuff out to the car. While I was out there, Colin pushed our kitchen set toy sort of crossways in the doorway. When I came back in, I turned it back, and he just stood there by himself and then moved both of his feet! He almost immediately dropped down onto all 4's and kind of had this reaction like "what the he** just happened?" :D So, it looks like he is getting closer to walking! He will walk holding 1 or 2 hands.

He's also waving "hi" and "bye bye". One of the cutest things he does is to hold up the phone, TV remote, toy cell phone, whatever up to his shoulder and say "hi".

We go for his 15 mo checkup on the 25th. It will be nice to go to the dr. for a well-child checkup for a change :rolleyes: ;)

[JanetJ]

Meredith, getting the ponytail(s) in is a big production at our house too. We have a ton of barrettes, but those get pulled out and chewed on within 3 seconds. :)

Dana, glad to hear things are going well with getting your business started. I hope you find a suitable kitchen soon. Very sweet about Brendan waiting to hold your hand!

Lara, he'll be walking in no time!

Apparently Maya had a meltdown at the grocery store today with my mom. She was in the cart and a male employee of the store came up to her and offered her a sticker. She started sobbing and my mom said it was really hard to calm her down. Poor thing.... Not sure what set her off, but I decided it wasn't a bad thing for her to be leery of strangers.

I also found molar #4 yesterday. I really hope we get a break on the teething front after this.

[Megan James]

I think I've tried to post at least twice this month but if Rebecca's up and around I don't get to type on the computer without her "helping".
So my april update:

Me: Megan
DH: Fred
DS: Rebecca 17 months
Accomplishments: Many more words, some more signs, definately trying to communicate which is great.
Challenges: Not many! She gets a little cranky sometimes and we do have some minor meltdowns but nothing to complain about.

We just got back from a 5 day trip to Florida. It was a great trip thought traveling with a 17month old is not easy. I think if we travel again before she is 2 we will seriously think about buying the extra seat. She is just so squirmy and always wants to move so sitting on an airplane is tough.
We stayed on the beach and Rebecca loved the sand and the ocean. She kept running into the ocean to "schwim". Which of course she can't do.
Easter was a total joy. She loved hunting for eggs and after she found the dozen we hid for her signed and said "more" until we rehid some of them.
Here are two pictures from the trip.
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/Rebeccasmom/IMG_3781-1.jpg
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c279/Rebeccasmom/IMG_3705-1.jpg

Cheers
Megan

[DanaSD]

are you still using and baby monitor and how long do you think you'll use one?

Ours broke this week - its making a static noise and not picking anything up on the receiver. Its the Sony one which was highly rated and around $50 so I'm bummed. I really don't feel like spending money on another one but I think we need it. Our house is big and I can't hear Brendan in the office or outside (and soon we'll be using the pool alot especially when he's napping or after he goes to bed). Because he's teething he's been waking up.

great pictures of Rebecca! I hope we get to take Brendan to the beach soon (we used to live 10 minutes away, now its 6 hours)

[gertdog]

Dana, I think we have the same Sony monitor. What a bummer that it isn't working! Did you try a different outlet? We have one outlet in our house that is slightly loose and the monitor doesn't work there. We do still use ours- we're in a 2-story house and when he's napping or in bed for the night we keep the receiver downstairs or out on the deck with us. I think we'll probably keep using it for a while yet... I like being able to work in the yard when he's sleeping, and wouldn't be able to hear him w/o the monitor.

[JanetJ]

We are still using our monitor. We have a 2-story house and need it for naps, especially if I'm working in the yard. We also need it at night even though our bedroom is close to DD's. DH has to sleep with a fan at night and I'm always worried I wouldn't hear her over it so we continue with the monitor. That is a bummer that yours broke, Dana! Maybe you can replace it with another that is less money? We have a Fisher Price model that was about $20 and we have been happy with it. It does only have one receiver (is that the right term?) that you can carry around, but we've never had the need for two.

Megan, adorable pictures!

[ggs830]

Hi all-- I finally have a free minute to post. Shaelyn is visiting my parents for the day, and the baby is hanging out quietly in the swing. :)

We've been on a roller coaster over here ever since Jahan came home. Shaelyn had a terrible cold and cough, which she developed right after we came home from the hospital. As a result, she was pretty miserable, and her night sleep was affected. The first week home was pretty difficult-- there were a couple of nights where we barely slept, i.e. one baby would settle down, and immediately, the other one would be up. :rolleyes: Luckily, my parents live close by, and they were really great that week with helping out and giving us a break.

Shaelyn finally shook her cold last week, by which time I think she realized that this little guy is here to stay, and the temper tantrums went into overdrive. Lots and lots of whining, crying for no reason (especially when one of us was holding the baby or doing something for the baby), and hitting/kicking when she didn't get her way. Any tips on the hitting/kicking? We've been firmly saying "no hitting" or "no kicking", but so far, it hasn't had any affect.

Her sleeping is also all over the place-- naps are okay, but she's been waking up for the day around 5:30 a.m., instead of her usual 7:30 a.m. What really sucks about that is that 5:30 is when Jahan is in a good deep sleep, so the sleeplessness for us continues. :rolleyes: I've tried putting her to bed earlier, per HSH, HC, put either she doesn't fall asleep at the earlier bed time, or she still wakes up early (like 6 a.m.).

Still, things are going, relatively speaking, fairly well. Shaelyn is eating really well (she currently loves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches), she's started speaking/signing more ("cracker", "car," and "cat"-- something about "c" words!), and she's all over the place in terms of her mobility. On the baby front, she hasn't taken out any of her anger about the situation on Jahan, thank goodness, and in fact, when we ask to give kisses to the baby, she readily complies. So cute!

Dana: we are still using our monitor, and plan on doing so for the foreseeable future. Our house isn't all that big, but I just feel more comfortable having the monitor out, especially since Shaelyn has been having sleep problems lately.

Janet: Shaelyn is the same way around strangers as Maya. Earlier this week, I took her over for a playdate with a friend of mine who recently moved into our area-- her son is 2 months older than Shaelyn. Anyways, for the first 30 minutes of our visit, she refused to leave my side, and if the little boy or my friend came even remotely close to us, she'd start crying and clutching me. Eventually, she got over it, and played nicely, but it took a while.

Lara: So cute about Colin the phone. Shaelyn does the same thing with my cell phone, i.e. she holds it to the back of her head (why, I don't know!), and carries on long and involved conversations.:p

Great pics everyone! I really must post some myself-- maybe next time I get a free minute to post!

[LaraW]

Stephanie, how did the lap tray thing work for your trip?

Gouri, you have my thoughts with you. I remember bringing Colin home from the hospital and Natalie's sleep getting messed up for a while. Do you still have Shaelyn in a crib? Can you put some books or quiet toys in there when she is asleep so she has something quiet to do when she wakes up? Do you get her up at 5:30, or do you make her stay in her bed for a while?

As for the hitting/kicking thing, I think it is a developmental thing, and you're doing the right thing by telling her "no" and redirecting her.

Janet, I remember Natalie going through a phase when she was very afraid of strangers, men in particular. The teachers in her daycare room had to sometimes pick her up and turn her back to the door when other kids' dads came to pick them up b/c she'd get very upset otherwise.

We are doing OK here. Colin continues to make progress with the walking which is so fun to see. He's been pushing chairs around the kitchen and dining room and is clearly very proud of himself ;)

That's about it with us. :) Happy weekend, everyone.

[DanaSD]

we too were in a hitting phase but its already passed (though I'm sure it will return again at some point). We did as Lara siad and always firmly said no. It didn't seem to have any effect and often he laughed back at me. But he hasn't hit in the last few weeks. If he's tired he will through things and he's king of the temper tantrums.

Brendan is fine with most strangers especially moms at playgrounds and playgroups - he'll go right up and talk to them. But occasionally there will be a stranger, usually a man, who will say hi to him and Brendan will have a melt down and keep sobbing for awhile. It usually someone with a deep loud voice - he's always been scared of certain types of noises.

[DanaSD]

Any other SAHMs thinking about returning to work?

I'm not really a SAHM but I was WAHM and now I'm starting my own business. I've given myself a year to try the business to see where I can get it and how I like it and then to decide if I want to become a SAHM. The last few weeks I didn't work on the business much and spent most of the days with my son, moms club activities, etc. I LOVED spending more time with him and its been so great. But I'm also thinking about how I want a career again and I want to work outside of the home. I've also been using the consulting services offered by my company as part of my severance package so I'm doing some job search. My work from home situation was ideal when Brendan was an infant and I still want to be working from home as much as possible until he's in preschool (3 or 4). But I think at that point I want to find a job outside the home, perferably parttime or 3/4 time or even a job that was partime work from home parttime in the office. I have no idea what I'll do since my former career is as a scientist and its hard to get back into that field and there aren't many jobs in that field here in Phoenix. I'm actually thinking about teaching science.

(I'm kind of in a funk about the business - mostly need to get motivated on it again, and then if its a success this above discussion won't even be an issue)

edited to add: I think its the guilt issue that bothering me. I spend more time with Brendan and I start to consider going back to work (out of the home). But I think its that when I spend more time with him, I'm spending less time with my career. Its hard because I'm loving having more time to spend with him but overall I haven't felt as happy. guilt....part of being a motherhood (no matter what decisions you make)

[buffygirl]

De-lurking...Dana, first off, your chocolates are amazing!!! Do that!:p I think the conflicting emotions you have are so normal. I'm a working mom and striking a balance is something I constantly struggle with. Ideally I would work about 30 hours per week. I'm currently working about 35 hours in the office and 5-15 from home in the evenings depending on how crazy things are. Overall it works for me. Fortunately I'm in an established role so I have the ability to flex my schedule as needed. It seems like for you, having your own business may offer you the most flexibility. Teaching would be great though too because of the summers off...

[Bawstinn]

<delurking scooter mom w/ a dumb ?>

I'm still nursing my 10 month old with the thought that she'd be weaned, for the most part, in 6 weeks or so when she turns one. I've been in my closet all morning trying on tops from 2 yrs ago and not one fits properly.

What can I expect when I stop nursing - will my chest get smaller? I am already a few pounds less than my pre-pg weight. Sounds dumb, but I guess I assumed that it would, but haven't found anything to back up my theory. I'm just wondering if I need to get all new Spring tops in a larger size or just a few to get me through a couple of months.

[mst]

Dana- I am of no help whatsoever. I love being at home, but have huge guilt about money.

Maria- My b*obs left me. :( It was pretty fast though, I don't even know if I would recommend buying big clothes.

[DanaSD]

I guess everyone is busy keeping up with their wobblers.

things are good here. Every day is more fun with the little guy. He's starting to eat more and escpecially likes the not so health foods - chocolate and fries (he's only had each one once). His favorite food is now blueberries and he's getting a little bored with his old favorite banana. He's also graduated from chicken nuggets to chicken! still no veggies other than when served as pumpkin, zuccini or carrot bread.

All 4 molors are working their way in so he has had some night waking or restless nights.

Question - have you baby proofed your alcohol? We have all of our wine bottles in our buffet which has slots and its located on the bottom of the buffet. Well the other day Brendan picked up a bottle - guess I need to move them so he doesn't break them. Also what about hard alcohol - just move it high or lock it up (treating the same as medicines)? We've mostly been taking the wait and see approach to see what he gets in before moving stuff.

For those of you with active kids, I have a new strategy for park play dates. With my moms club we do lots of playdates at the park. Well Brendan is running around so much that I don't get time to talk to the other moms and he doens't play with kids. We arrived early one day so I took him over to the soccer field and we ran around for 30 minuts until the others arrived. For the first time, Brendan played in the sand with the other kids and I got to talk to the other moms. I just need to exercise this kid more. We've started to do walks around the block - it can take time though because he gets distracted by sticks and rocks but we eventually make it.