Aaron is now 19 months old! And, he's quite the imitator! He pays close attention to pretty much everything and copies - from signing, "helping", "cooking", and tantrums. He has now perfected the protester limp, thank you big sister! He finally started saying "mama" just over a month ago - how happy I was to hear that word! His vocabulary these days includes: mama, daddy, bubble, bowl, ball, bib, zz, baba (his blanket lovey), down, bird, yellow, bell, nana (banana), uh oh. He gets excited over trucks, cars, planes, helicopters - quite the boy's boy. He signs very well and can copy the signs very well: cat, orange, down, thank you, please, owl, yes, dog, car, banana, daddy, mommy, more, water, drink, eat, grandmom, grandpop, help, baby, bear, plane.
Zofia turned 3 last month! We had a birthday party for her. She had a horse and butterfly cake, yellow cake torted with mango buttercream and chocolate cake torted with strawberry buttercream. She had a blast. The week leading up to and after her birthday were so wonderful - she was so easy to get along with. "Being 3" was a big thing - she was a big girl, didn't need help, could do everything. Then just as quick, this phase passed and we were back to tantrums, screaming, crying over EVERYTHING, waking up in the middle of the night, waking up screaming from naps! I was praying she wouldn't revert on toileting since she has been potty trained for just under a year.
But today was heavenly and peaceful...thank you, God!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Thursday, December 31, 2009
The past is past, the future is now!
Good-bye 2009!!! Glad to see you go! Move out of the way for 2010!
My year in review:
Aaron - little motorboat
- sleep, cry, scream, sleep, sleep, sleep, smile, coo - 100 days!!!
- Aaron sick with infant botulism and spending 4 days in the hospital in April when he was just over 6 months old
- learning to crawl
- learning to cruise
- Happy Birthday 1 year old!
- learning to walk
- beginning to babble - nana (banana), baba (lovey), dada (daddy)
- sleeping through the night
- where's your belly, your nose, your fingers, your toes?
- laughing, smiling, playing
joy, joy, joy
Zofia - wind her up and let her go!
- talk talk
- talk talk
- why?
- why?
- Happy Birthday 2 year old!
- sprained ankle from jumping - ouch! - learn how to crawl again to get around
- pretend play and the world of make believe
- frustration!!!! can't do it! need help!
- jumping, leaping, spinning, dancing, laughing, loving
joy, joy, joy
My year in review:
Aaron - little motorboat
- sleep, cry, scream, sleep, sleep, sleep, smile, coo - 100 days!!!
- Aaron sick with infant botulism and spending 4 days in the hospital in April when he was just over 6 months old
- learning to crawl
- learning to cruise
- Happy Birthday 1 year old!
- learning to walk
- beginning to babble - nana (banana), baba (lovey), dada (daddy)
- sleeping through the night
- where's your belly, your nose, your fingers, your toes?
- laughing, smiling, playing
joy, joy, joy
Zofia - wind her up and let her go!
- talk talk
- talk talk
- why?
- why?
- Happy Birthday 2 year old!
- sprained ankle from jumping - ouch! - learn how to crawl again to get around
- pretend play and the world of make believe
- frustration!!!! can't do it! need help!
- jumping, leaping, spinning, dancing, laughing, loving
joy, joy, joy
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Birthday, Baptisms, and GPS oh my!
Aaron is 1! Saturday we spent his birthday with Brian, JoAnne, Kaitlyn, and Kevin at the Smithsonian museums - American History and Natural History. What a way to spend a birthday!
After they went to bed, I needed to get going on food for his birthday party and decorating their baptism cake. 6 hours later I was able to call it a night and get a few hours of rest before I needed to finish up cooking in the morning (some dishes just cannot be made ahead of time).
Steven and I woke up to 2 very cranky children and one neurotic dog - couple that with 3 maybe 4 hours of sleep and it was a powder keg. 9am or so my mother calls me informing me that her GPS hasn't told her what to do and Tommy wasn't coming. HUH?! Where are you? Did you pass the exit for 495? You see 295? Great exit! HUH?! You're on 50 East? I thought you exited? Yes, you'll have to turn around. click (that's the sound of my mom hanging up because she needs to drive and doesn't want to waste her battery and doesn't know how to use speaker phone). Where are you now? I have no idea where that is. click. Where are you now? You stopped to ask someone? Give her the phone. click. Benning Road?! I thought I told you to stay on 295 SOUTH. I DON'T CARE WHAT THE GPS IS SAYING! geez that is like the WORST part of town. click. You are asking someone else? GIVE HIM THE PHONE - PLEASE HELP MY MOTHER GET 2 BLOCKS TO THE EXIT FOR 295 SOUTH! click. You are on 295 South now? Great! click. You are on 495 now? Great! click. Lorton Road coming up? Great! click.
We made it barely a little late for church and the rest of the day was absolutely WONDERFUL! and I'm sooooo proud of my mom for driving by herself all the way here!
After they went to bed, I needed to get going on food for his birthday party and decorating their baptism cake. 6 hours later I was able to call it a night and get a few hours of rest before I needed to finish up cooking in the morning (some dishes just cannot be made ahead of time).
Steven and I woke up to 2 very cranky children and one neurotic dog - couple that with 3 maybe 4 hours of sleep and it was a powder keg. 9am or so my mother calls me informing me that her GPS hasn't told her what to do and Tommy wasn't coming. HUH?! Where are you? Did you pass the exit for 495? You see 295? Great exit! HUH?! You're on 50 East? I thought you exited? Yes, you'll have to turn around. click (that's the sound of my mom hanging up because she needs to drive and doesn't want to waste her battery and doesn't know how to use speaker phone). Where are you now? I have no idea where that is. click. Where are you now? You stopped to ask someone? Give her the phone. click. Benning Road?! I thought I told you to stay on 295 SOUTH. I DON'T CARE WHAT THE GPS IS SAYING! geez that is like the WORST part of town. click. You are asking someone else? GIVE HIM THE PHONE - PLEASE HELP MY MOTHER GET 2 BLOCKS TO THE EXIT FOR 295 SOUTH! click. You are on 295 South now? Great! click. You are on 495 now? Great! click. Lorton Road coming up? Great! click.
We made it barely a little late for church and the rest of the day was absolutely WONDERFUL! and I'm sooooo proud of my mom for driving by herself all the way here!
Monday, September 7, 2009
From the time I fall asleep till the morning comes I dream about you baby
Summer's end is approaching. It was a very busy summer with camping, a trip to Massachusetts, swimming lessons for Zofia, swimming with friends, going to the beach, the zoo, farms, trains, carousels, festivals, phew....
Aaron is 10 1/2 months and he's such a beautiful boy. He's got the prettiest blue eyes. His hair color eludes me - sometimes it looks strawberry blonde and other times just blonde. He has pretty much finished his PT this month. He is finally cross-crawling consistently as of tonight!!! He has also been pulling up to stand, cruising around, and can't wait to walk! He is "SOOOO BIGGGG" these days and his appetite is enormous! Aaron is also a keen observer and listener and copies very well. He's more vocal but still no particular distinct words other than 'Ba-Ba' (which can mean his lovey or bottle) and 'Da-Da' (which can mean Daddy, of course, or pretty much anything else he sees). Aaron is so different from Zofia in many ways - he's definitely more gross-motor and has a sharper temper (ugh) , but he's definitely more social. He also has his groove on - this boy jams to music! I love watching him listen to music as he shakes his head and wiggles his body! He's getting over his separation anxiety a little which is a welcome relief for me since I don't have to be in the same room all the time now - I can actually walk to the kitchen without a meltdown. We play chase around the kitchen peninsula and he anticipates which direction I'll be coming from, sometimes I'll surprise him and he'll screech in delight!
Zofia is almost 2 1/2! She's almost 38" tall and 35 pounds - off the charts! Potty training is still in progress. We are working on getting her to stop peeing in her training underwear. If she's bare, she knows what to do and does it. I've even braved her napping bare (successfully twice but I know I'm just playing odds at this point) and a short car ride but she just can't seem to get it when she's wearing her training pants. So most of the time she's in a dress or shirt and free and loose down below. Zofia recently sprained her foot playing at the play area at Fair Oaks mall and she's recovered. The day after it happened we had to teach her to crawl all over again so that she could get around. She was a trooper through it. Discipline is another item we've been working on especially table manners. Eating has become complete mayhem as of late partly because Zofia imitates Aaron's lack of grace while eating - it's infuriating sometimes! It's bad enough to have Aaron covered in food let alone Aaron and Zofia! Some days it takes all the strength I can to make it through a meal as I dread the next.
Today we celebrated Steven's birthday (which was yesterday) and Zofia helped me make the cake. She has been talking about his cake ALL DAY telling me that she's ready to eat the cake, "Mommy, I'm ready for the cake". She didn't quite understand why we weren't eating it until after dinner. When we finally finished dinner and got ready for the cake she was so excited! We lit the candles, sang "Happy Birthday", and Zofia helped blow out the candles (she actually got 1 of them out!). Grandpa gave Steven his card, which Zofia helped "read" and then gave him his present (again, as she gave it to him yesterday). She ate the cake and wanted another slice but didn't quite understand why we needed to save it. Nonetheless, she gave Steven a great big hug and said "Daddy, thank you for sharing your cake with me".
Aaron is 10 1/2 months and he's such a beautiful boy. He's got the prettiest blue eyes. His hair color eludes me - sometimes it looks strawberry blonde and other times just blonde. He has pretty much finished his PT this month. He is finally cross-crawling consistently as of tonight!!! He has also been pulling up to stand, cruising around, and can't wait to walk! He is "SOOOO BIGGGG" these days and his appetite is enormous! Aaron is also a keen observer and listener and copies very well. He's more vocal but still no particular distinct words other than 'Ba-Ba' (which can mean his lovey or bottle) and 'Da-Da' (which can mean Daddy, of course, or pretty much anything else he sees). Aaron is so different from Zofia in many ways - he's definitely more gross-motor and has a sharper temper (ugh) , but he's definitely more social. He also has his groove on - this boy jams to music! I love watching him listen to music as he shakes his head and wiggles his body! He's getting over his separation anxiety a little which is a welcome relief for me since I don't have to be in the same room all the time now - I can actually walk to the kitchen without a meltdown. We play chase around the kitchen peninsula and he anticipates which direction I'll be coming from, sometimes I'll surprise him and he'll screech in delight!
Zofia is almost 2 1/2! She's almost 38" tall and 35 pounds - off the charts! Potty training is still in progress. We are working on getting her to stop peeing in her training underwear. If she's bare, she knows what to do and does it. I've even braved her napping bare (successfully twice but I know I'm just playing odds at this point) and a short car ride but she just can't seem to get it when she's wearing her training pants. So most of the time she's in a dress or shirt and free and loose down below. Zofia recently sprained her foot playing at the play area at Fair Oaks mall and she's recovered. The day after it happened we had to teach her to crawl all over again so that she could get around. She was a trooper through it. Discipline is another item we've been working on especially table manners. Eating has become complete mayhem as of late partly because Zofia imitates Aaron's lack of grace while eating - it's infuriating sometimes! It's bad enough to have Aaron covered in food let alone Aaron and Zofia! Some days it takes all the strength I can to make it through a meal as I dread the next.
Today we celebrated Steven's birthday (which was yesterday) and Zofia helped me make the cake. She has been talking about his cake ALL DAY telling me that she's ready to eat the cake, "Mommy, I'm ready for the cake". She didn't quite understand why we weren't eating it until after dinner. When we finally finished dinner and got ready for the cake she was so excited! We lit the candles, sang "Happy Birthday", and Zofia helped blow out the candles (she actually got 1 of them out!). Grandpa gave Steven his card, which Zofia helped "read" and then gave him his present (again, as she gave it to him yesterday). She ate the cake and wanted another slice but didn't quite understand why we needed to save it. Nonetheless, she gave Steven a great big hug and said "Daddy, thank you for sharing your cake with me".
Friday, June 12, 2009
I poop, you poop, we all poop
Yesterday we took Molly our dog for a walk after dinner. Molly is getting old and in her senior age has become a little more stubborn about things....you know imagine the old people that you know that do things because "hey, I'm old, I can do what I want".
As we were walking down the street to her usual woodline latrine, Molly pooped along the sidewalk without even stopping and left a trail for me to pick up. Zofia was shocked and said "Molly pooped!" I bagged it up and as I walked back to the stroller, Zofia said this to Molly "Molly you pooped! I'm so proud of you!" Then she gave her a big hug and told me that we needed to flush her poop.
Lesson - how you respond to your child is witnessed in how they respond to others
As we were walking down the street to her usual woodline latrine, Molly pooped along the sidewalk without even stopping and left a trail for me to pick up. Zofia was shocked and said "Molly pooped!" I bagged it up and as I walked back to the stroller, Zofia said this to Molly "Molly you pooped! I'm so proud of you!" Then she gave her a big hug and told me that we needed to flush her poop.
Lesson - how you respond to your child is witnessed in how they respond to others
Thursday, June 4, 2009
pleppppt!
Aaron is approaching 8 months! He is rolling over like crazy, starting to spin on his belly, making tons of raspberries and sounds, sitting up unsupported and playing, and is intent on keeping track of Zofia and me. Looks like 2 teeth are starting and are bothering him! We've tried solids but so far the only thing that he likes is Stage 1 bananas. Once I find something he'll eat I'll be making his food like I did for Z. He's in physical therapy once a week because of the botulism and according to the therapist is about 1 month behind.
Last month was hell though! All of us came down with a nasty cold. It first started with Zofia who passed it to Aaron and I, then I passed it to Steven. They ran temperatures between 103-105 degrees and got ear infections to boot. I got an upper respiratory infection and all three of us were on antibiotics - ugh.
Because of the antibiotics, Aaron developed thrush and a yeasty diaper rash - good grief. So rather than giving him more drugs, I decided to try the homeopathic approach and use grapefruit seed extract and acidophilous for both of us. It knocked the thrush back but didn't eradicate it. So I then picked up Gentian Violet. It's pretty incredible stuff and in 2 days it was gone albeit we were purple! It came back and at Aaron's follow up yesterday we got a prescription for Nystatin. His right ear is still infected but it's not bothering him too much so I'll wait on filling the script. We are still fighting the diaper rash with Lotrimin and diaper cream but it's persistant!
Last month was hell though! All of us came down with a nasty cold. It first started with Zofia who passed it to Aaron and I, then I passed it to Steven. They ran temperatures between 103-105 degrees and got ear infections to boot. I got an upper respiratory infection and all three of us were on antibiotics - ugh.
Because of the antibiotics, Aaron developed thrush and a yeasty diaper rash - good grief. So rather than giving him more drugs, I decided to try the homeopathic approach and use grapefruit seed extract and acidophilous for both of us. It knocked the thrush back but didn't eradicate it. So I then picked up Gentian Violet. It's pretty incredible stuff and in 2 days it was gone albeit we were purple! It came back and at Aaron's follow up yesterday we got a prescription for Nystatin. His right ear is still infected but it's not bothering him too much so I'll wait on filling the script. We are still fighting the diaper rash with Lotrimin and diaper cream but it's persistant!
Miss, Miss, Miss, Hit, Score!
Now that warmer weather is here, I decided to take the opportunity to begin potty training Zofia. For her birthday, her uncle Tommy bought her a potty training book. We also have two potty chairs available and I bought some training underpants from Hanna Andersson. OK, I think I am ready...but is she?
So for the last 1-1/2 weeks we've been in training. I first started out by putting her in the training underpants. However, she called them diapers and used them as such. Gone. So she went butt-naked from the waist down for about 1/2 a day everyday. The first time she used the potty she got tons of praise, high-fives, a phone call to daddy, and the awesome treat to flush the toilet.
So in earnest we started last Friday. We spent the entire day in the studio so that I could make a water-sling for Aaron to take to the pool. She played with her toys and every 30 minutes or so I reminded her about the potty by either taking her there or asking her to tell me where it was or telling me what goes in the potty. I made sure she knew that all of her friends also used the potty. She had 3 accidents that day and about 3 hits. Diapers went on for naps.
The potty chair has been moved around the main floor of the house but has a final spot near the window with a towel underneath to catch inevitable drips - yuck. She is now sitting on her chair without prompting to use it - yeah! Today we tried underpants again but still not working out yet.
Today's score:
Miss: 1
Hits: 3!
So for the last 1-1/2 weeks we've been in training. I first started out by putting her in the training underpants. However, she called them diapers and used them as such. Gone. So she went butt-naked from the waist down for about 1/2 a day everyday. The first time she used the potty she got tons of praise, high-fives, a phone call to daddy, and the awesome treat to flush the toilet.
So in earnest we started last Friday. We spent the entire day in the studio so that I could make a water-sling for Aaron to take to the pool. She played with her toys and every 30 minutes or so I reminded her about the potty by either taking her there or asking her to tell me where it was or telling me what goes in the potty. I made sure she knew that all of her friends also used the potty. She had 3 accidents that day and about 3 hits. Diapers went on for naps.
The potty chair has been moved around the main floor of the house but has a final spot near the window with a towel underneath to catch inevitable drips - yuck. She is now sitting on her chair without prompting to use it - yeah! Today we tried underpants again but still not working out yet.
Today's score:
Miss: 1
Hits: 3!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
