April 2006 Moms - Our babies are here!

[Sal03]

Checking in from vacation. It is raining here and the kiddies are napping :) THey have been sleeping great here!both sleeping 11 hours overnight!

Strollers We have 4 now. LOL We have a Graco tracel system, a Maclaren Triumph, and for the doubles a Zooper Tango and Graco tandem. For the trip we brought our two singles instead of a double so we could keep Katie in the car seat at restaurants and we could both push on the narrow sidewalks. We love our Maclaren. It does not have the extras that the Maclaran Techo has, but it has been very good to us. The only thing is that the sun shade is not great so we bought an extra one that straps on that makes it work better.

The weather has not been great but it does not matter all that much. While the kids have been napping, DH and I have been reading and relaxing and enjoying quiet time. When we are at home we are always running around doing stuff while they nap - never relaxing so this is really nice. Tonight my dad and stepmom are babysitting so we will put the kids to bed and go out for a date :) then we'll do the same thing on wednesday. whohoo! :)

sorry no other SOs. this wifi connection is lousy!

ETA : Teething Katie is getting her two middle bottom teeth! I see tiny white spots! She is being a trooper though. chomping on her fingers and still sleeping well.

[bctoledo]

Ben is doing much better. He isn't as cranky and slept through the night last night, but is still chomping on everything. It's definitely teething.

Stroller We have the Graco travel system and have been using that. Ben hates the carseat, so we've been putting him forward facing in the stroller. He loves looking around. I would like to eventually get an umbrella stroller.

DTD We make it a point to DTD at least once a week.

I have some Enfamil and Nestle formula coupons if anyone wants them.

[mel7dog]

Baby weight - I've lost all mine (thanks to BF not my so-so eating habits!), but I hear you on not being toned :( The middle of my tummy around my belly button is so not cute. I have been walking on and off, but this isn't doing much for me since I used to run and lift like a maniac before. The gym here has free daycare for babies 6 months and up, so I figure at that point, I'll have no excuse. I can't imagine trying to exercise and work, my hat goes off to you for trying!!

[Jane&Andy]

Joey's Halloween costume arrived today, its too big but should fit great in 2 months. I'm pretty thrilled with the quality.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v300/Jane52403/picture624.jpg
(from One Step Ahead)

baby weight - I've probably got a few more pounds left to go. And my belly is bigger than it was before and so are my boobs so NONE of my pre=pg clothes fit. Even if an old top goes around my boobs it doesn't fit the same and is too short, leaves me feeling too exposed. This probably has a lot to do with the lack of cuddling going on here, I don't feel at all good about myself. I'm now trying to start doing some light yoga and eating better. I've had a lot of trouble with my back lately so I can't do much exercise-wise. And BFing doesn't seem to be helping me out much as far as weight loss is concerned.

Sal - I hope you are having a nice vacation!

uskiku - welcome back!

teething - Joey was quite the little crab today but I still don't see any signs of teeth close to breaking through so I don't know if his bad mood was related to teething or if he was just having an off day. Aside from today he hasn't been too terrible, but not quite as easygoing as usual. Hopefully he'll get his teeth soon.

[jrsygirl]

jane how cute is Joey!!! I love that costume

[LittleStar]

I wasn't going to post because I seriously need to go to bed, but Jane - Joey is so adorable!!

And since I'm here...baby weight - I'm still carrying some, but I think most of it's in my bf'ing boobs! I hate that I've had to buy "transitional" clothes, but I wouldn't have anything to wear to work if I didn't. Running has always worked well for me in terms of getting into shape, but I'm a little afraid to with the "girls." And I'm just being lazy ;) Starting an exercise routine is definitely on my list of things to do when I have the time. And I know that would help us out in the DTD department.

[Jane&Andy]

thanks jrsygirl and LittleStar. :)

LittleStar - I'm carrying extra weight in my boobs too! I need to do some cardio but I don't have any bras supportive enough for that! :p

My lower back has been killing me lately so I finally made an dr's appt for this afternoon. I hope they can help. I have a long drive next week to visit family that will be rough otherwise. Not to mention the general day to day discomfort and difficulty in taking care of Joey.

[jeeplover]

Jane-Joey's costume is adorable! He is too funny with how large it is on him now-what a cute expression on his face!

[shania0474]

Jane Joey looks so cute! And he has this "look what mommy has put me in now" expression on his face :p Hope your back feels better soon.

baby weight I could have written littlestar's post! I feel exactly the same way. I still have about 10 pounds to go and I think its all in the boobs. Before first pregnancy I wore B-cup bras, then went to D during pregnancy and to F during breastfeeding :eek: !!! I tried to run once after I had Gabriel but the "girls" were bouncing so hard I had to stop and call my busty best friend (who runs everyday) and ask her how she does it!

sal have a great vacation!

welcome back uskiku and good luck with the WBV

now that August is coming to a close, I need to start thinking seriously about what I want to do next -- preferably something out of home so I can continue to spend more time with my babies. Any work-at-home moms here? Any advice? I might set up a poll in parenting if I can figure out how.

[Jane&Andy]

thanks jeeplover and shania. :) He'd just woken up from a too short nap so he wasn't in the best of moods when I put the costume on him. Poor baby. :p

shania - I can sympathize. I'm an F too. I can't find a decent nursing bra in my size!

[JenniferEC]

uskiku - Welcome back. Glad you had a good time in Europe.

Jane - That pic is so adorable! Joey makes a great lion! I want to post a pic of Marin in her ocotpus costume, but I'm not up to signing up with another photo site.

baby weight - I still have some to lose and it's all in the stomach and boobs. We just joined the Y so I have to start working out. As for the boobs, DH says I can get another reduction when we're sure we aren't having more kids. The weight had been a lot more difficult to lose this time.

[April'06Moms]

Updated to here. :)

[mel7dog]

Jane - The costume is SO cute!! I am still trying to decide on Ben's, but I love looking at them.

Running Bra - In college I wore 2 sports bra when I ran. Last year I splurged and bought a couple good Adidas ones. They hold everything in! Yes, they are $$, but so worth it in the end.

[shania0474]

Jane I have a couple Medela nursing bras in F and really love them! I also like Bravado nursing bras but they don't give as much support as medela so I wear them to sleep

mel That's what my friend said (that she wears two sports bras when she runs). Thanks for the adidas tip -- any idea where I can get them online (going to stores is now a big adventure for me).

[Jane&Andy]

shania - where do you buy your bras? I'm having trouble finding a place (online or regular store) that sells my size. I just ordered 2 this morning from Motherwear but they didn't list what brand. I figure I'll send them back if they don't work out.

[mel7dog]

shania - I bought mine in store, but it looks like this is the store.
http://www.shopadidas.com/category/index.jsp?categoryId=2039727&cp=2019628

I'm sure you could google around for discounts or a better price!

[shania0474]

Jane I buy my bras at a store in Manhattan called Upper Breast Side (they carry all breastfeeding essentials). I just called them (to see if you can buy bras from them by phone or online) and they informed me that Medela has stopped making nursing bras in size F!!! They recommend Anita bras or Elle MacPherson. They recommend going to a store to get measured before buying (they actually don't like to sell bras by mail but will do so on the condition that they cannot be returned). By the way, if you want to talk to Upper Breast Side, their number is 212 873-2653. HTH!

Thanks, mel I will check out the link.

[Jane&Andy]

thanks Shania. :) I've never had much luck getting measured for bras, for some reason it just doesn't seem to work for me. I got measured when I was a few months pregnant and they recommended a C cup but I was bra shopping b/c I was pouring out of my double D's. :confused: My Mom said the same thing happens with her.

[amygrrl]

malin popped her first tooth last night! hopefully that was the reason for the craptastic sleep for the last 2 nights. her second one looks to be close behind so i'm hoping it comes in the next week so we can start some serious sleep training. though she is at least now sleeping in the crib it night. it's just been taking hours to get her to go down for the first time of the night.

bras - i have the anita underwire nursing bras and love them.

[LittleStar]

I went to pick H up from school and found him sick :( The teacher had just taken his temp and it was 99.5. So, we're off to see the dr. tomorrow morning, and of course, he can't go back to school til he's fever-less for 24 hours. He seems sick (sorta lethargic), but not too sick (he was still able to give me some grins). I'm hoping that it's just a bug. I thought maybe it was from teething, but he's also a bit congested. Of course this would happen when DH is out of town :rolleyes:

[jeeplover]

Littlestar-So sorry to hear that H is sick! I hope that he is feeling better soon!

[Jane&Andy]

LittleStar - I'm sorry he's sick, I hope he feels better soon.

[LittleStar]

Thanks Jane and Jeeplover. It's official-we have our first cold. He still had a fever this morning, but I gave him some more tylenol when we got home from the dr. and he doesn't seem as warm anymore. He's actually sleeping in his crib now :p , only fussed for a few minutes. On the way home from the dr., we had to stop by my office so I could pick up some files to work on since I'll be home today and tomorrow with him. Trying not to let the mommy guilt bother me too much...

[uskiku]

Jane, Shania and Jennifer thanks for the warm welcome! :)

LittleStar Hope H. is doing better!

amygrrl Congrats on the tooth!! Gosh, how I envy you... 7 long weeks on, we're still working on our first one...

Shania While trying to catch up with the thread, I noticed your post about consolidating naps. Would you mind sharing your experience with this? Afraid DS is a difficult case: right now his morning wake-up time is still highly erratic (though it used to be 6:30 AM) and his naps are a disaster -- he wakes up ALL THE TIME. Maybe it's teeth, maybe it's rolling over. But he does seem to want to sleep more, but is unable to put himself back to sleep. Think a routine would help him greatly, but I'm at a loss how to establish one.

Bras I have 3 YES bras and I absolutely love them. Got them from an ebay seller -- breastfeedingisbest, I think was her name.

Crap, he is up again... :(

[amygrrl]

holy teething, batman - malin popped her second tooth last night!

sleep - she's officially out of the swing and sleeping in her crib for all naps and at night now. she does require a 5 minute swing with her favorite song to get her in the mood to sleep, but we put her in the crib awake and she puts herself to sleep! now if we could just get rid of the the 2 night wakings at night we'll be in business.

littlestar - hope the monkey is feeling better!

[briamcd]

Baby weight - I've actually put on weight since i've been staying at home with Mackenzie. Dh has a high school reunion coming up in a month so we're both dieting right now. Just gotta get up the energy to exercise. With both of us dieting it should be easier. And I empathize with you girls on the boobs.. mine are huge. They were big before pregnancy, now they are just crazy. I'm not bfing anymore, I thought they would shrink a bit, guess not. :(

[jeeplover]

Baby weight- I have hit a plateau with mine. I really need to get back to Stroller Fit when we come back from our trip to MA.

Well we are headed to MA for a week or so I hope since DH has shown no motivation of packing up the car in the rain.

Kyle is becoming more and more talkative lately. It is so funny because he will just babble on and on and will "talk" back to us when we talk to him.

QOTD Toothbrush-So I have been looking at toothbrushes for Kyle since it seems like he will get his first tooth soon and I found these at One Step Ahead but haven't had a chance to head to BRU to see if they have them-has anyone seen these in stores?

http://www.onestepahead.com/images/product/thumbnails_detail_gifs/11279-dv-2.jpg

[shania0474]

Just a quick driveby to respond to uskiku -- I read about consolidating sleep in Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. Basically at this age, our babies should be napping three times a day at 9am, 1pm and sometime btw 3 and 5pm (third nap optional) -- something about "sleep windows". Here's what we do (based on his recommendation):

When G wakes up at about 7am, I make a big deal of it (good morning!, play, open the blinds and flood his room with light). By 8:30 I start doing the reverse, I breastfeed, darken the room, decrease noise and by 8:55 he's yawning and I put him down in his crib awake. I repeat that twice around 1pm and 3:30pm (taking him for walks in between). At night I put him down around 7pm (only to start the process again 12 hours later).

amygrrl are you bfing? HSHHC also says some bfing babies tend to wake up to eat at night and its no problem as long as they go right back to sleep after eating (as opposed to wanting to play with mommy). Gabriel wakes up once around 3-4am but sleeps after 5 mins of sucking.

ETA: Now that G's sleep rhythm is set, we don't have to do as much ceremony anymore (just put him down and he goes to sleep). I wrote all that just to let you know how we got him into the rhythm at first.
Hope that helps!

[mel7dog]

jeeplover - We're heading to MA in a week as well! That's where I'm from so we're going to see my parents for a week. I'm sure we'll be in Boston some and maybe even take DH for a trip down to "P" town :p

[Sal03]

Jeeplover We have one of those for Dylan from Buy Buy Baby. Don't know if you have that store near you.

Baby Weight I am actually below pre pregnancy now. This is the same thing that happened when I was nursing Dylan. I got way too thin and I hated the way I looked. I am trying to load up on peanut butter and other fattening stuff. Unfortunately the boobs are back to my normal small size. Oh well, at least I kind of still have cleavage in the morning when I am really full!

Uskiku welcome back! are you glad to be back home? I know we were happy to come back into our comfort zone! :)

LittleStar Hope your little guy is feeling better. I can sympathize as Katie has a cold right now. Don't feel mommy guilt - Katie caught it from Dylan. Can happen anytime, wherever they are!

We are back from vacation. The weather really was lousy, we only had 2 nice days but Dylan had a blast and it was fun having quality family time. Unfortunately, Dylan caught a little cold and then DH did and now worst of all, Katie got it :( I can't believe it. Even exposed to other sick kids, Dylan did not get a cold until he was a year old when I started weaning. She is so stuffy. Dylan just takes it in stride and keeps playing. Now I am hoping I don't get it because I need to take care of everyone!

[mel7dog]

Sal -
Oh well, at least I kind of still have cleavage in the morning when I am really full!


LMAO! you are too funny!

Sorry about the family cold. Hope it passes soon.

[Jane&Andy]

we lost power b/c of Ernesto. :( So after one night of no power (Friday) we went to stay with my BIL and SIL Saturday. We're back home now and have power but its made for a rather sucky holiday weekend. Plus DH flies out tomorrow morning for a business trip. Oh well.

No signs of any teeth yet. But I was talking to my oldest sister and her kids didn't pop their first teeth til 7 and 8 months. So I wouldn't be surprised if Joey is a little late with teeth too.

Sal - I'm sorry everyone is sick! I hope they all feel better soon and don't pass the germies on to you.

[shania0474]

sal hope everyone is feeling better and you've managed to avoid catching the cold. DH, the kids and I are visiting friends in DC this weekend and they all have colds.... of course both David and Gabriel now have colds (Gabriel's first) and DH is being extremely careful not to piss me off because he knows I didn't want to come in the first place... he's actually being very involved in caring for the boys and they are loving all the daddy attention :)

[Jane&Andy]

DH left this morning for a business trip so its just me, the boy and the pets now. Hopefully I can be productive and get some cleaning done tonight. My house is a mess and I'll be out of town this weekend and then hosting a playgroup next week.

[hapahaole]

sal
Don't feel bad about Katie getting sick. Jack got his first cold at 6 months (croup) and was sick off and on for at least the next 6 months. I hope Katie gets over this one quickly and is back to her happy self soon. Sorry to hear you had some crappy weather on your vacation...but sounds like you had a nice time despite it. I hear you on the weight loss and small boobs. Same with Jack, I'm below my pre pregancy weight...and I get to enjoy eating Marie Calendar chicken pot pies and peanut granola bars (and all kinds of junk food for that matter). Cheers to breastfeeding.

toothbrush
We got the toothbrush that you slip over your finger (kind of like a finger condom if there is such a thing) and that worked pretty good for awhile. Though we're not as good at brushing as we should be (with our 2 year old).

Jane&Andy
Bummer DH is out on a business trip. My DH works late and travels a bunch so I can sympathize. Though sometimes it is easier with him gone...no need to make dinner (I just snack). But it's so nice to have him come home early and play with the kids.

holiday weekend
Well, we had a fabulous weekend. The weather coulding be better...upper 70's to low 80's, ocean view...ahhh.
We just got back from our neighbor's house. We've been alternating houses every other Sunday for dinner. They've got a 2 year old too and great cooking skills. We took the kids to the beach and the public pool this weekend and a birthday party. Had some new friends over for brunch this morning and a slew of friends over for dinner Sat night. Only bummer is that work will really start picking up for DH now that it's Sept. :( Will be busy until Xmas or so...

Have a great week everyone!!!!
hapa

[JenniferEC]

shania - Does G wake up at the same time every day? I'd love to get Marin on that schedule, but she gets up once in the night and it's never the same time so she get's up for the day at different times.

Sal - Sorry about the lousy weather and Katie getting sick. I hope she's better by now.

Jane - I hope the time flies by while your DH is gone.

toothbrush - We were bad about brushing Caden's teeth the first year, but now he wants to brush his teeth all the time. I think we'll just use a wet washcloth to wipe them down.

weight - I'm starting to get really depressed that the weight isn't coming off as fast this time. Cutting out pop isn't helping a bit and neither is eating a little less. My grandma gave me birthday money early, so I'm going to use it to hire a personal trainer at the Y to motivate me. My goal is to be at my wedding weight by Christmas.

We leave for Chicago on Friday. I'm nervous to take both kids, but it will be fun to have a mini-vacation.

[Jane&Andy]

Thanks Jennifer and Hapa. I'm used to him working long hours but he doesn't travel much so I pout when he does.

Jennifer - Hope you have fun in Chicago - I love it there. We're going later this month (my sister lives there).

Joey's new quirky habit is sucking on his lower lip. What a silly boy. He's starting to wear some 6-9 month clothes finally. Its fun to break into a new wardrobe! :)

[uskiku]

Well, we finally had our 4-month WBV last Friday and... we're in the 95-7th percentile for weight :eek:


4 months
weight: 18 lbs 9 oz
height: 25 inches

We have a little milk piggy in our hands! Shots were painful... poor little milk piggy cried and cried until I fed him... He slept so badly that night and in the morning we discovered he was running a temperature. :( . He was whiney and only wanted to be held... Luckily we got rid of the temperature pretty soon, but the next 2 nights were very bad as well: he would wake up often and would not go down no matter what. Finally this last night was better -- phew!

In other news, I learned that my grandfather passed away Saturday night... This has been a sad weekend for us.

Shania Thanks for your reply! :) Darkening the room before the nap is a great idea; I'll adopt that! Sorry about kids getting sick... hope your little guys are doing better now!

Sal Oh dear -- family cold does not sound like fun... Hope you are doing better!

weight I've still got 2 pounds to go and these 2 seem to have stubbornly stuck around my belly :rolleyes: . I can get into most of my pre-pregnancy pants, though some of them are tiiiight...

[Sevilla]

Weight: I've been back in all my pre-pg clothes since 6 weeks pp. I'm either at or under my pre-pg weight right now. But i'm on a dairy-free/soy-free/nut-free diet b/c of allergy issues with DS so there's just not much proccessed/fatty food that i can eat. While its nice to have dropped all the weight so fast (i put on almost 40 lbs), i miss eating foods like yogurt.

[SaphirimalMei]

Had Finn's 4 mo WBV.

Here's my chunkamuffin's stats:
4 months
Weight: 16lbs 10oz (75%)
Height: 27 inches (95%)
we've got him in 6-12mo clothes

weight: I'm at least 5-10 lbs over pre-preg weight which is not at all surprising considering my thyroid has shut down like it did after having DD. Up til now, I didnt have health insurance, but I finally have it again, and have made an appt with my endocrinologist. Woo hoo! Finally! Cant tell you how psyched I am about that :D

teeth: none yet, but he's drooling like a fiend. DD didn't have a single darn tooth til she was 14 months old and faked us out with lots of drooling bouts, so who knows when Finn'll get fangs :p

[jeeplover]

jeeplover - We're heading to MA in a week as well! That's where I'm from so we're going to see my parents for a week. I'm sure we'll be in Boston some and maybe even take DH for a trip down to "P" town :p

Mel-I didn't realize you were from the Cape as well, I am too! We are in Boston right now and I am hoping to head to the Cape tomorrow!
************************************************

I found those toothbrushes at Buy Buy Baby and Kyle loves it!

I have a cold and now DH has caught it. I am praying that Kyle doesn't get it!

[Jane&Andy]

here's what I mean about sucking on his lower lip, he does it all the time now - such a silly boy!
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid214/pe3c9e4785f292203dec4530f03eb3428/ed20e178.jpg
and here's a more flattering picture
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid214/p46c95e83b2297da2d1fbdead3df45b38/ed20d279.jpg
he's still VERY bald. I knew he'd be born bald, its just the way babies are in both of our families. BUT I expected that by now he'd have more.

uskiku - I'm sorry about your Grandfather. :(

[jrsygirl]

Jane- Paige does the same thing! She has a little red mark under her lower lip she sucks so hard. Brian jokes that people in the cars around us can hear her schlurping away when we drive!

Neither of my babies have hair either- i fully expect them to both be bald until they are 10 at this rate!

[Sal03]

Uskiku SO sorry about your Grandfather :(

Jane I really pout too when DH is away even for a night. Just makes things so much harder when there is not a second set of hands. And I am such a scaredy cat in my own house! :o

Jeeplover sorry about the colds. they are the worst. it's this lousy east coast weather!

Jennifer don't feel bad about your weight. it is so hard to eat healthy while caring for two kids. and I have heard the average for losing baby weight is 8 months to a year anyway!

Shania sorry your kids are sick too. Isn't it a pain going away with two kids??

Hapa your weekend sounds glorious. nothing like the weather here. just cold and rainy and 60s. not exactly a pleasant end of august vacation! And I am just like you. my grandma brought me a coffee cake and I ate the WHOLE THING in two days :eek: BIG cheers to BFing LOL

Ok ladies. send me LOTS of hugs. Dylan is starting pre-pre school tomorrow four days a week for a few hours. I don't know how I will do it. If it is too much for him, I will take him out after giving it a fair chance for him to get adjusted. But I think the socialization will be good for him. we have not done a class in months because of Katie and he only interacts with the same three kids on playdates. I know it will be harder on me than him, I have barely been away from him since he was born. I am just not one of those moms who needs to get away from their kids. I go out when they are napping or in bed for the night. And this will give me more quality time with Katie. okay REALLY rambling now. think I am anxious???

[JenniferEC]

uskiku - Sorry about your grandfather. Hope you are adjusting well at home.

Jane - Love the green bear outfit. It looks like he is watching tv in that pic. :)

Sal - (((hugs))) Good luck tomorrow and let me know how it goes. Also, enjoy the one on one time with Katie. Caden starts school on Friday and I know I will be a mess. He only goes on Fridays, but I'm not ready to have him out of my sight. We go to Tumble Bees (gymnastics) one day a week, but I am with him all the time. Thankfully DH is off that day so he'll go with me to drop him off and then we are leaving for Chicago right after. Still I know I will lose it.

[Jane&Andy]

Good luck with sending Dylan to preschool Sal. :) My 3yr old nephew just started preschool - I think today was his 5th class. He cried the first day but my sister said when she picked him up today he barely even looked up from the table where he was playing to greet her. She has an 18 month old too and has really enjoyed the one on one time with the younger child.

thanks Jennifer. :) I had a coupon for the Children's Place so I just couldn't resist the bear outfit - he has a matching hoodie too. :p

jrsygirl - that's what I keep saying - Joey won't need a haircut til he's 10!

[Kopper]

I've been been MIA for awhile.

We went to Port Aransas Thursday and came back last night. It was fun but we are glad to be back. It rained all yesterday for the drive back. It should have been a 7 hour car ride but it took nearly 12 because of the traffic. It was horrible. Thankfully DH took today off to recoup.

[bctoledo]

We had our 4 month WBV last week. He's in the 95th percentile for both height and weight at 26 1/2 inches and 18 lbs, 12 oz. I don't know where he gets the height from!

I officially went back to work today. I'm only working 3 days a week, so hopefully it won't be too bad. DS did great, much better than me. He didn't cry at all when I left him.

We going to GA this weekend for a long weekend. DH is going on a business trip, so DS and I are going to tag along.

[LittleStar]

Uskiku - I'm so sorry for your loss.

Baldies - Count me in as one with a bald baby. OK, so he has a *few* wisps of hair, but not enough to count :p

DH's who travel - How do you ladies do it? It wipes me out when DH is gone on a business trip.

I'm getting so behind at work. I try to work from home in the evenings and weekends, but frankly, I don't *want* to. I just want to spend time with H and DH, kwim? I feel like a cr@ppy worker and (sometimes) a cr@ppy mom. I don't really want to SAH though - that was wayyyy too hard. A part time gig isn't really feasible. Guess I'm just venting...

[mel7dog]

Uskiku - Hugs to you and your family.

Littlestar - I understand your issues with SAH/working. I SAH because I was afraid of doing 2 things halfway like you mentioned, but I always have to try to kee myself busy, so I don't get bored and then bummed up. I think it's just a lot of adjustment no matter which path you choose :(

Switching to big carseat - When is everyone switching? I know we still have about 5 lbs to go till our snug ride is too small, but I wonder how long that will be.

DH being gone - Mine has been in and out lately due to extra military training. It is easier having him here so we can swtich DS around when he's fussy, but somehow I seem to have more patience when it's just me, maybe because I have to?! :p

[Sevilla]

Uskiku: I am very sorry about the loss of your grandfather :(

Littlestar: I hope the transition back into work goes well. I quit my full-time teaching position after having DS but i found a part-time position where i work two mornings per week, and can bring him with me as there is an on-site nursery (free!) so it's working well so far.

Switching carseat: We have the Graco Safeseat so DS won't outgrow that until at least a year, and given that he is in the 30-ish percentile will probably still fit in it until closer to 18 months. I love being able to switch just one carseat between two bases!

[charissa]

uskiku - sorry about your grandfather, :(

SAH - currently I'm SAH, supposed to be WAH, but I got laid off b/c D.O.D. cut my project's funding, I used to work for a government contractor, so, it all worked out for the best. And yeah, it is a little bit of an adjustment, but since I hadn't been working since March anyway, just feels like an extended maternity leave :)

DH who travels - mine used to a lot, luckily its been cut down a little, so is not too bad. He'll be gone for a week at a time twice in the next two months, so I'm kinda bummed. but yeah, it DEFINITELY is much easier when he's around, I salute any single moms/dads... good lord.

switching car seats - I asked that same ? somewhere else, can't remember, but we just ordered our Britax Marathon yesterday, so as soon as that comes in we're switching.

height limit? DS is only 12-13 lbs right now and is just about to hit his 5 month mark, so we have a ways to go on the weight limit on the car seat, but he's definitely nearing the length limit. Is your Graco limited at 27, 28 or 29 inches? (if you have one) the guy at BRU said it should be 28, but mine said 29... weird...

[Jane&Andy]

DH's who travel - mine doesn't travel much but what drives me crazy is his office usually has so much trouble making the travel plans that they aren't made til the last minute and he's gone for longer than he needs to be. Like this time - there was a flight out at 8pm Monday (he needs to be there for Tuesday) but they didn't book it in time and he had to fly out at noon. Anyway, most days he isn't home before Joey goes to bed so I'm used to taking care of the baby on my own. I just get lonely without him. And he does take care of other household chores and if I need to run an errand in the evening I can. When its just Joey and me I can't leave the house after 5 (he starts getting fussy around 5 and I take him upstairs to feed him at 5:30 before bed).

car seat - Joey will move to the next car seat soon. He's not at the weight limit yet but will outgrow it by length. We have an older Graco (it was my sister's) so I believe it has a 26 inch limit. But I've just been paying attention to how close his head is to the top (needs 1 inch of plastic shell above his head) and its getting closer and closer.

[bctoledo]

DH's who travel DH doesn't travel too much but when he does it is always last minute. I don't like it one bit. I get lonely and tired taking care of DS by myself.

car seat We switched to the next car seat last weekend. He had a few more pounds, but the length limit on ours was 26". It stinks because he can't sit up yet so I have to carry him when we go places where I can't take the stroller.

[April'06Moms]

Updated to here

Reminder: please post updates in red :)

[Jane&Andy]

DH got home from his business trip today. He came home sick and has been asleep pretty much all evening. Joey and I leave in the morning (visiting my family in NC for the weekend). This sucks. :(

Joey napped horribly today. he follows a routine fairly similar to what Shania recently described but has not gotten the hang of napping yet. Some days are better than others.

[Sully130]

uskiku -I'm so sorry about your grandfather.

Bald babies - I've got a little baldie myself too. Actually, he does have some blonde hair, and it is getting "thicker" but it's super fine and really not all that much. And since it's blonde, he just looks bald. My DH calls him the "old man." :)

carseat - Like sevilla, we have the Safeseat so we hope we can use it for a good bit longer. Not sure how much longer I'll be able to carry him from the house to the car in it though. I think he's close to pushing 20 pounds now. He's my new weightlifting exercise. I don't think he'll make it to a year in it(since he's already been consistently in the 90th percentile for height and weight), but we'll see.

Traveling DHs - Mine has been leaving for short deployments with the military about once a month, for ten days or so. It's not fun and I don't see how single parents survive full time! He's looking for a full-time civilian job though and I think he's found one that will have him traveling out of the state most days of the week. He's happy about the job so I'm trying to be happy, but I also know I'm up for quite a challenge.

Jane - Have a safe and happy trip. Hope Joey will start napping well for you consistently!

LittleStar - Sorry things are rough right now. Hope they improve quickly!


Off to watch Project Runway!

[jeeplover]

Traveling DHs-Mine does but not as much as he used to thankfully. It definitely makes for some very long days and I am usually completely exhausted while he is gone.

Car Seat-I have a Graco and it goes until 29 inches. In the moms group I am in we had a local woman who works for the fire dept come in and talk about car seat safety and she said it is not so much the weight limit you have to worry about but the length requirements. K is currently 25 inches so hopefully it will last us a little longer but I have started to comparison shop for a convertible car seat for him.

Bald babies-Well unfortunately I can't relate to this considering we just had to bring K in for his first haircut at almost 5 months!

Jane-Have a great trip! Sorry that DH is sick and you didn't get to spend much time with him!

Well we are still in Boston but K and I are heading to my parents house tomorrow for the weekend. It has been tough for K this week with is naps and I hope that when we return home it won't be a problem trying to get back into his routine!

[briamcd]

bctoledo - I'm not sure how feasible it is but you can keep the carrier in the trunk and still carry him around in it. I might not be "safe" for riding in the car, but unless your really clumsy (:p) it should be safe to carry him.

Mackenzie will definetly hit the height limit before the weight. I bought my carseat used though so i'm not sure what the height limit is. Also I've been looking into convertible carseats that go from 20 lbs to 100 lbs, but those are all forward facing only. I'm not sure exactly what I need b/c I think they are supposed to be rear facing until 12 months. So, the rear facing ones go from 20lbs to 40lbs. So, I guess I'm wondering how old is the average 40lb kid. She's way under weight so I'm sure it will take her longer to get there, but I still have no comparison to even begin to guess. B/c I'm a SAHM and DH is a full time student we don't really have the money to buy the really expensive ones, and I was also hoping to buy one that would last until she's out of them...Any suggestions?

[shania0474]

uskiku so sorry to hear about your grandfather. hugs to you and your family. yes, I've found that darkening the room before a nap works very well for G (so does taking him out for a brief walk--even if for just 20 minutes--between naps).

Jennifer Gabriel wakes up anytime between 6:45 and 7:30 (75% of the time between 7 and 7:20). On the few occasions he wakes up before 7am, I don't go to him until 7am (he plays quietly in his crib chewing his toes or talking to the animals on his mobile). It was more erratic at first but the longer we stay on schedule, the more regular it is

sal Thanks. Both boys are doing better but now DH has a cold :( Yes it is much harder to travel with two babies. Friday night wasn't bad though, DH had to work a full day so when he got home, it was close to their bedtime so we gave them baths, changed them into their PJs and put them to "bed" in their car seats. They slept all the way (except for when we had to stop briefly to get gas and get DH some food). Coming back wasn't as easy. How did Dylan's first day at school go? I am starting David at a pre-preschool program as well (in October) for a couple of hours two days/week. Parents attend with kids at first then leave for short periods which gradually increase until the kids are completely alone with the teachers.

Jane G does that too (suck bottom lip)! He also sucks the top and sometimes smacks both of them together making a repeated "mam" sound... I insist the boy is calling mom already :p Have a great trip! Hope your DH is feeling better

carseat we're buying the Marathon this weekend -- I've been slacking on ordering one and the boy is practically half out of his snug ride so we need to get one asap.

Traveling DHs thankfully mine doesn't travel too much and when he does, its usually for one night (during which I probably call him one million times). He's supposed to go out of the country right around Thanksgiving and I'm trying to convince him to take us along to make it part work, part family vacation

LittleStar I can totally relate! I've been at home since I quit my job and I'm loving the time I get to spend with the boys. I have to start doing something soon though so now I'm working on a business plan to start my own business so I can work at my own schedule

Oops, I just realized it is 1am and the boy will wake up in about 2 hours for his middle of the night feeding... what am I doing awake??? Goodnight ladies!

[Jane&Andy]

briamcd - check out the car seat thread (http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=243) for advice, lots of helpful info there. By law they need to stay rear facing til 1 yrs old AND 20lbs. But its safest for them to stay that way as long as possible.

gotta run and hop in the shower before the boy wakes up. It sounds like my highway out of town this morning is blocked b/c of an accident so I need to take an alternate route. What a pain! :rolleyes:

[SaphirimalMei]

bctoledo - I'm not sure how feasible it is but you can keep the carrier in the trunk and still carry him around in it. that's what we did for my daughter. Kept it in the trunk and pulled it out for going to the store, or a restaurant, etc. It worked great!

I was also hoping to buy one that would last until she's out of them...Any suggestions? We bought the Safety 1st Interra for DD. When she grew out of the carrier, we had the big seat rear-facing til after she was a year old and 20 lbs. That seat is rated 5lbs-100lbs, has a booster seat, and is quite affordable :)

[briamcd]

ok. I found a carseat on Albee Baby...after my first experience with ordering baby stuff online I'm a little worried about it. So...anyone know about this site?

[Sully130]

briamcd I bought our stroller (P3) from Albee Baby through their ebay name, Babysurplus. They were very easy to deal with. The item shipped quickly and arrived just when they said it would. No complaints from me!


~~~~
T is on a napstrike after doing so well this morning (I put him down awake and he went to sleep on his own). Now he has the hiccups so I figured might as well give up trying for now. So he's happy as a clam sitting in my lap, hiccuping away. But if I put him in his crib, he'll scream bloody murder. Fun times! :) Oh the joys of an overtired baby!

[LittleStar]

Briamcd - I bought our infant car seat on albeebaby. No complaints at all!

[Sal03]

Shania and Jennifer thanks :) I know you guys can relate with the preschool thing. Yesterday was his first day and he did well at dropoff. Just was playing and happy. But when I went to pick him up I heard him crying through the door so that was so hard. I tried not to openly sob when I picked him up. I was all teary though so I basically just ran out. But the teached said he only cried twice, once at the beginning and just before at the end. So that was pretty good. He even did his first art project :) Then today was not a good dropoff since he knows now I am leaving. So he started to look all scared and sad every time I went near the door. Then when I tried to kiss him good bye he started crying so I was going to also so I ran out and heard him saying MAMA MAMA MAMA as I went down the hall. I mean, HEARTBREAKING. I was crying walking across the parking lot. But then a little later I called the class and he had only cried for a few minutes and was happily playing with playdoh. Then when I picked him up he was playing with books and he said bye bye to everyone and was all happy. So hopefully it continues to go well on Monday!

Meanwhile I had food poisoning last night. SO I was basically throwing up on and off btw 4pm and 10pm and was so weak and shaky all night and am still not 100% today. Not sick anymore at least. Anyone ever try and take care of 2 kids while having food poisoning? DON'T TRY IT! thank goodness they both went to sleep EARLY. Moms really have some kind of inner strength. I believe that. Some higher power helped me make dylan dinner and get them both to bed without passing out!

[Sevilla]

Sal - i'm glad the transition to preschool is going well (even though its hard too).

[mel7dog]

Sal - Oh I can just picture sweet littl Dylan all sad, make Me want to cry. Seems like it is already getting better though! :) Hope you are feeling better, yuck!

[shania0474]

sal I was tearing up while reading your post... that will be me next month! Lots of hugs to Dylan (and you)!

[Sal03]

Sully hope the naps are getting better

Thanks Shania, Mel and Sevilla It's been a little rough and I feel like MOnday is going to be awful. Dylan has never had sep anxiety a day in his life - literally. Sometimes I would wish for him to at least a LITTLE. and he has been so clingy to me non stop afraid I am going to leave him somewhere. So that has been really hard :( I feel like he has never had anything in life to make him sad or afraid and now he does. He does have fun while he is there though so hopefully next week going 4 days in a row will get him into a routine.



AND in Katie news, my perfect little sleeper has not been so perfect the last few nights. She is teething really badly, nothing has popped through yet. So last night she woke at 11 and then went back to sleep after nursing and then at 1, but she put herself back to sleep after that one. I forgot how much teething sucks and there are soooooooo many more to go! oh speaking of...I hear her...
hope everyone has a great weekend!

[uskiku]

Thank you everyone for your sweet messages and kind words on my grandfather's passing; it really meant a lot to come in here and read all your messages.

***

Sal Your post about Dylan's first day at pre-school brought tears to my eyes... HUGS! The good thing is that he is having fun there, so I'm sure it'll make the transition faster. Good luck tomorrow!

Shania Thanks again! :) Walks are great; there's nothing like it to tire them out! I've been working on darkening the room before the nap. Sometimes I think it freaks him out, as he realizes that nap-time is approaching and he does not like that!

Bri We bought our crib and the stroller from Albeebaby and were very satisfied with them: fast shipping, nice and friendly customer service -- in short, I had a great experience with them.

Car seat We're soon moving out of our Infant Snugride into the Britax Marathon that FIL got us as a baby/shower present. One thing that's holding us back from making the switch is the canopy (or the lack thereof) in Marathon. Does anyone know whether I can purchase a canopy or a (sun) shade for a Marathon? The seat is also very upright and we think we might wait a few weeks (if possible, DS is soooo big :D ) before having him sitting up like that for long stretches.

Exciting nap news :rolleyes: For the first time EVER I put DS in the crib exhausted but awake. He let out a little yelp and... fell asleep! I do not expect this to be so easy next time, though...

[JenniferEC]

Sal - I'm glad to hear Dylan did better on Thursday. I'm sure it will take him time to get fully adjusted. How are you doing? Caden did pretty well on Friday. He didn't realize I left the room and was fine when I picked him up. Of course he was only there for an hour, so we'll se how he does this Friday when it's 2 1/2 hours. This is the first time he's been left with somebody I don't know, so it's been tough to get used to that. Hope Katie's teething and sleeping are better.

carseat - Marin still has room in her infant one, but I'm going to start shopping this week. I really want the Marathon cow print, but will see what deals I can find online.

We had to leave Chicago yesterday instead of staying through today. Marin did great, but Caden wouldn't go to bed at night or take a nap so it was a disaster. We did have fun at Navy Pier, but without enough sleep, he was a terror. At least DH is off today so I can relax a little.

[mel7dog]

We're leaving today for a week long trip to MA to see my family. I'm a little nervous about the whole airport/plane/baby situation. Ben is usually a very happy baby (knock.on.wood) so hopefully today will go well. Not looking forward to feeling like a cow on the go most of the day though ;) LOL. At least I am dressing for easy access!

[shania0474]

mel have a great trip! I found (later) that this is the best age to travel with a baby... breastfed during take-off and landing (to help with the ear pressure) and it was smooth sailing all the way. Traveling with a toddler on the other hand.... :mad:

uskiku congrats on the great nap! Routines are really a mom's best friend. I used to shy away from "schedules" (it seemed like such a dirty word :) ) but then David's sleep habits were fast approaching "disastrous" and I quickly had to get my act together. Now I see the big difference it makes to start early because Gabriel is still much better at naps & sttn than his older brother. My best friend calls me "the sleep nazi" because I don't joke about naps and our bedtime routine (she knows not to call btw 6pm and 7:30pm unless it is an emergency)

car seat DH and I went to Buy Buy Baby to get the Marathon car seat for G this past weekend. While there, I fell in love with the Decathlon and decided to get that instead (I liked the Boulevard too but hated the fact that the side impact protection also means no side views out of windows and I have very curious sons who will hate that feature). Unfortunately they only had the Decathlon in pink and black, I thought the black was too blah and DH was like "no way in hell am I getting a pink car seat for my boy" so we ended up ordering the car seat from Albee Baby (I got the one with the Tribeca print and it was $40 cheaper with free shipping!) I can't wait to get it!

[Jane&Andy]

I drove to NC last Thursday with Joey (6hr drive) and the drive destroyed my back. I was bedridden once I got there and my DH and his brother had to drive down to pick us up. I burned my back with improper use of an ice pack (yes, I'm an idiot) so that isn't helping at all. I have an appt this afternoon with another dr, hopefully they can help. People had suggested I see my OB since my previous family dr wouldn't do anything while I'm BFing but my OB's office refuses to see me for my back (I know its not what they normally do, but I'm just trying to find anyone who will help me). So I'm seeing a different dr within the same family practice today. DH is taking some time off to help with Joey. My back is getting better but its still in bad shape. I'm not online much now b/c I can't sit for long. I've been reading along when I can, just can't sit long enough to respond.

[shania0474]

sorry about your back, Jane! Hope you feel better soon

[ginandchris]

Hello everyone,

I'm back from vacation with DH and Deborah. We left last Sunday at 2:30 am to drive to Las Vegas for a week, then spent the weekend in LA with DH's family for his nephew's baptism.

Deborah did great during the car ride just sleeping the whole time and waking to play and eat. While there in Vegas she did pretty well. She let us stroll her around the hotels not crying when we stopped to look at things or take pics with her. The only day she was a bear was on Thursday, we had planned dinner at our favorite prime rib place, but she wouldn't let us eat our meal at all! Most time she will fuss a little then we carry her for a bit then she'll let us put her back down, but she wouldn't let us put her down at all!

As for the heat DD loved the hot weather! She usually sneezes if it is below 85 degrees! We even took her by the hotel pool DH and I took turns cooling down in the pool and we even took her and got her arms and legs wet. She loved it.

As for me, I'm going back to work at my old job on Wednesday :( I can't believe how quickly 5 months went by! I thought I was going to be able to get a new job, but hasn't worked out yet. The people in my dept aren't sensitive to those that have kids, so its hard for me to relate to them. I'm currently on the lookout for a new job. As soon as I get one I'm outta there!

Here are my responses for past topics:

Carseat-- we will probably get the Marathon as well. I don't know when probably next month. DD will too out grow the height requirement vs the weight limit.

Weight--I'm still carrying about 15 lbs of PG weight. Since my supply was never enough I think that's why I haven't lost the rest of the weight yet. I too have had to buy "transitional" clothes.

Sleep--DD still continues to nap and STTN great. She does still wake because she gets stuck in the corners of her crib or can't turn over, usually 1-2 times a night. I just go in and turn her over give her paci and she goes back to sleep. She still takes about 3 naps a day.

[Jane&Andy]

Shania - thanks.

I saw a different dr today and she prescribed physical therapy. I start that on Monday (the soonest I could get an appt). So my DH will have to come home early to watch Joey. It works out pretty well for me though, he has his 6 month WBV that morning and he was a total crab after the last one - so I'm sure I'll be needing a break by the afternoon!

DH pulled the carseat out of the box today but hasn't installed it yet.

gina - I'm glad you had a nice vacation.

Joey got to try out the swings at my sister's house.
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid214/p8103d0d9ee62c734b4ba7d85ef221b86/ed0a9dc1.jpg
(the fabric is his shopping cart cover)
DH is talking about trying to build him a swing set next summer. My sister got lucky and bought hers for $25 from someone in her neighborhood that was moving, but I doubt I'll get that lucky.

[Sal03]

Jane ohmygosh joey looks so big in that picture! hope you are feeling better!

Gina glad you had a nice trip. that is SO typical about the steak dinner though. something similar happened to us the first time we took dylan on vacation.

Mel hope the trip is going well!

Jennifer I'll be thinking of you Friday. It is rough. I have yet to drop dylan off without going back to my car and crying :(

Dylan has been doing well. He cries at dropoff which breaks my heart but the rest of the time yesterday and today he did great! They had a special music person come in yesterday which he loved and today they took a walk to the chicken coop they have there which he was interested in. I am waiting outside when the class is done and he gets the biggest smile when he sees me and runs to me. It's the best. And he has already done two art projects which are up on the fridge. How did we GET here already?? Treasure every second for the first time moms. I am sure you realized this already, but everything goes way too fast.

Katie sttn last night which was great. she had not in a week. she actually woke up at 9:30 and 3:30 but soothed herself back to sleep within a few minutes both times which is a great sign. Hopefully she is learning to get herself through the teething. I am not ready to lose my perfect sleeping schedule. Meanwhile the mornings when dylan is at school have been fun for us. We have been doing little outings and I am enjoying my alone time with her. She is such a smiley baby and so much fun now.

Oh we started cereal two days ago. She is only 5.5 months but I figured close enough to our date of 6 months. ANd she is only getting 1 tbsp a day to start getting her used to it. I mixed it with some warm breastmilk and she was kind of indifferent to it. I'll give her a tiny bit each day to ease her in.

[Jane&Andy]

quiet thread this week.

DH has been home a lot this week helping out while I rest my back. Its getting better and better and the freezer burns are almost healed but I am still very anxious to start physical therapy on Monday and really start the road to recovery.

Joey's latest quirky habit is sucking on my face, its really odd. He does it to DH too. He does it A LOT. I wouldn't mind if he didn't usually grab a hold of my hair when doing it, that hurts.

I gave him carrots today. He'll be 6 months old Saturday, so I'm starting a few days early. He didn't much care for them but it was only our first try.

he's getting better and better with the sitting. I sit behind him and put a toy in front of him and he'll lean forward and support himself while trying to play with the toy.

carrots
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid215/pc4c075acdba2d095e6442187cdc69538/ecfa8a32.jpg
sucking on Mommy's face
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid215/p97b2c7435b054a5edff58fa7486dca8f/ecfa8b07.jpg
and happy baby
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid214/pb9194a04e43385ac8db2bf9cc0a06689/ecfdc26e.jpg

[Sevilla]

The pic of him sucking on your face is soooo cute!!! I love quirky baby habits :). Glad your recovery is going well too.

[JenniferEC]

Jane - Such cute pics! I love that hat with the dogs. Glad you are feeling better

Sal - How did school go this week? I hope it gets better. I'm dreading tomorrow but am looking forward to the break.

I still can't bring myself to buy a carseat. We still have time, but I'd like to get one soon. It makes me so mad that Britax controls the prices on their seats. I keep hoping MIL will offer to buy this one, too, but so far no luck.

coats - Seeing Jane's pic with the sweater and hat has me thinking I better start looking for Marin's outerwear for this winter. Caden wore a coat and we put blankets over his legs, but Marin is a lot smaller and I'm thinking of a one-piece but am not sure how that would work in the car seat. Has anybody bought their DC winter outerwear yet?

[Sal03]

Jane I love your new avatar. Dylan always sucked our faces and now katie does it too. these babies will suck on anything. I have a picture somewhere of dylan sucking on my cheek. It is so cute

Jennifer this week was great. :) The teacher said he really seems to love it. He is so verbal there and is SO happy when I pick him up. I think the 4 days in a row really helped get him used to it fast. He still cries a little at dropoff but I can hear that he has stopped by the time I get to the door of the building. When I peak through the door when I come to get him he is always having fun. I feel so good about it now. Last week I was not so sure!
Katie will wear the same thing dylan did. the bundler from gap. it can either be a sack at the bottom or it separates to snap into legs if they are in the car seat. it is a one piece fleece thing. Dylan did not have a jacket until the next year. let me see if I can post a pic

http://www.gap.com/Asset_Archive/GPWeb/Assets/Product/391/391229/main/gp391229-00p01v01.jpg

[Sevilla]

**Announcement**

Have you guys heard about the Kecci diaper bag co-op? I just put in my order - it closes tonight at 8pm EST. So if you're interested i'd move fast. I *love* my Kecci bag, i have the Shanghai. And they retail for almost $60 new so this coop is great deal.

There is a Kecci co-op starting now on that board and this will be the last one for a while - here is the link to the boards to join:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Diaperfabricscoop/?yguid=156836690

Here is the link to the direct message:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Diaperfabricscoop/message/17577

You have to join the yahoo group to get access. Prices are listed in the board's Database. Old and new styles are included in the co-op, also blankets.

To view the bags: www.kecci.com

Here are the prices (shipping will be added later):
Shanghai II $32, Wave Tote $23, Bellagio Como $32, Florence $24, Pasitano $28, Heirloom Patchwork Empress $26, Lilo $24, Beijing $22, Ruffled Blanket $26, Patchwork Blanket $30

[Jane&Andy]

Sal - glad to hear your babies liked to suck on your face too, I've never seen a baby dive for a face like Joey does. :rolleyes: :p

winter wear - Joey has the sweater and hat in my avatar, a couple of hooded jackets and a thick winter coat (although probably too thick to wear in the car seat). I just got some handmedown winter clothes from my sister so I think he's well set for the colder weather.

[Sal03]

Jane found it. here is dylan sucking face :)

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f298/rebeccag202/DSC02083.jpg

[JenniferEC]

Sal - Thanks for the info on the bundler. If it is currently available from the Gap, I'm going to look into getting it. I have a 20% coupon that expires soon. Glad Dylan is doing so well in school. He's becoming an old pro! That's a great pic. Is that a train on the piggy pank? And I recognize Tad. We had to take him out of Caden's crib because he would set it off at night.

[Kopper]

Sal - Too cute! Jacob does the same thing. He loves my nose but it bugs me b/c he slobbers so much.

Sevilla - Thanks for the info. I love my Kecci. I wish it was a bit bigger though.

Jane - Cute pictures! I love his sweater and hat.

winter clothes - I ordered a few things from ON yesterday. It's still really warm here and will be for a few more weeks.

car seat - We have the Graco Safe Seat so DS should be in it for awhile. He is 18.5lbs but it goes to 30lbs.

sleep - It's pretty mixed. Naps are ok but he is still taking 90% of them on me. Nighttime sleep is great! Last night he slept for 9 hours straight and he did 9.5 hours two nights before that. He is going down much easier. I'm still waking up a lot though trying to get used to him sleeping longer.

solids - I'm going to try and make all DS's food so this weekend we are going to check out ice cube trays at BB&B and get Super Baby Foods. Jacob's 6 month WBV is on 10/2 and hopefully his ped will let him start solids then.

[Jane&Andy]

Sal - great picture! So glad to see that my baby is not the only face sucker around! If any of my neices and nephews ever did it I never heard about it. Joey is just so intent on doing it, I can't hardly hug him (I worry about him damaging his poor nose b/c he slams his head back and forth pretty viciously against my face and he yanks out chunks of my hair).

baby food - I made baby food today! I started him out on store bought carrots (not gonna make that at home b/c of the nitrates) and then today I made a batch of pears and sweet potatoes. It was really easy.

I'm hosting a playgroup tomorrow. I think 9 kids are coming (oldest is 4, youngest is 3 months). :eek:

[Kopper]

I'm hosting a playgroup tomorrow. I think 9 kids are coming (oldest is 4, youngest is 3 months). :eek:

Have fun! :) I'm not brave enough to host yet. We don't have that many toys for older kids to play with. Can I ask what you are going to do with your furr babies? I have 3 cats and a dog also and wonder how hosting would work with them. My dog would want to be in the middle of everything. I am thinking about hosting a play group near the end of the year. (I have to plan far ahead b/c DH works from home.) It's fun though. Let us know how it goes.

Sevilla - Thanks again! I think I was able to order another Kecci bag. I sent money to the co-op so I hope I was able to get in on time You can't beat those prices.

[Sevilla]

Kopper - Cool! It was so confusing to me filing out the database with my info but i think i did it right, i copied what others did. I can't believe how awesome the prices are!

[Sevilla]

Winter wear: DS is pretty well set for winter i think. Maybe a few more outfits, a fleece bunting, and some long sleeved onesies will be all he needs. The one thing i bought that i'm loving is robeez knock-offs from Shoeszoo on Ebay. They rock! We have the elephant, penguin, and dinosaur ones. $9.99 a pair plus fast shipping.

http://stores.ebay.com/Shoes-Zoo_W0QQcolZ2QQdirZQ2d1QQfsubZQ2d999QQftidZ2QQtZkm

[Txfish]

Hi everyone -- remember me? (Horribly delinquent poster, I know.)

Haven't been online in forever, but trying to reconnect now that Thing 1 is in kindergarten all day. (Oh my gosh, the tears. Mine, of course.)

Quickly, I saw this question a few pages back:
Briamcd, if you still need the info -- my dd has always been much taller than she is heavy, and just now hit 40 lbs this summer (when she turned 5.) She is about 45"... bottom line, if that's how Mac is built, I'd say you have no worries about a 40 lb seat limit until she can be in a booster.

Also, Uskiku, I'm so sorry to hear about your grandfather.

We have been doing well around here -- enjoying the SAHM-ness, and Whitney has continued to be a very easy and happy baby. She normally wakes once a night and just needs a paci; typically takes (2) 1.5 hour naps a day (around 9:30 and 1-1:30), then down for the night at 7. She's been drooling like a fiend off and on, but no teeth yet. (I'm very excited we've made it this far, as Caro got her first 2 at 4 months. Holy painful nursing!) We're currently enjoying our first cold -- but so far, so good, no sinus infection. We're LOVING the Little Noses Decongestant Drops -- makes so much sense to put the meds directly into the nasal cavity, and it works really quickly to unclog her.

Last stats I have on Whit: at 4 months, she was 24 3/4 inches and 13 lbs 4 oz. Apparently she is "dead-solid average", as her ped put it. :) A very funny kiddo -- chatters a lot (has discovered the joy of squealing), smiles constantly, giggles her fool head off at other little kids. Her idea of bliss is to sit outside her sister's gymnastics class and let one of the other kids' little brothers pull on her toes. She rolls back to front very occasionally, but she's kind of lazy and would rather flirt with me until I do it for her LOL I have never seen a baby wake up so darn happy, either -- I really need to get this on tape someday. You'll walk into her room and she just props herself up a gives you the biggest grin with these blinking sleepy eyes... it's a real melter, I tell you.

Food: I'm fighting to get back to all BM, but since her growth spurt around month 3 we've been supplementing with formula. She gets a couple of bottles a day. Plus, we did go ahead and start her on cereal (I skip the rice and go straight for oatmeal), and she does that once a day. The feeding schedule gets so complex when you start adding in meals! (But I stagger food and milk about an hour apart.)

Geez, sorry for the novel. Anyway, I read the last few pages, sounds like everyone is doing fairly well (even if some babies need a bop with the sleep wand). Those of you with traveling dh's -- hang in there! Mine's only been actually out of town a couple of nights, but he's home late a lot -- so you know, when the kids are already in bed, you've had to do it all yourself anyway. I feel your pain!! (Luckily that has not been so bad lately. Whew. It's tough!)

Beautiful pics of these kiddos!! Let me see if I can get this one posted, because it makes me snort every time I see it:
This just may end up being her Halloween costume heehee
http://images.kodakgallery.com/photos2242/3/79/65/44/47/5/547446579303_0_ALB.jpg

And a real one (you have no idea how much she loves that turtle...)
http://images.kodakgallery.com/photos2279/3/89/74/2/49/5/549027489303_0_ALB.jpg

Hope to be back around with you all!

[Jane&Andy]

Kopper - the cats are going to be free to hide or run loose, whatever they want (most likely all will hide) and the dog will be in his kennel. If the weather is good and the 3 and 4yr olds are playing outside and show an interest in playing with him I will let him out and stay outside with them. He's VERY friendly but overly friendly - he will get in their faces and lick them. So while he's being nice, it could easily scare kids. As far as toys, I have an assortment thanks to generous handmedowns from my sisters (the latest is a leapfrog table!). Nothing really meant for a 3 or 4yr old but they just seem to run around at previous playgroups anyway.

TXfish - welcome back! So glad to hear you are doing well and Miss Whitney is such a happy baby. We can't see your pictures, Kodak doesn't work here - try flickr, photobucket or imagestation.

Sevilla - thanks for the shoe link! me thinks Joey needs a new pair or two (shoes like that stay on better than socks!)

[Sevilla]

Jane - Glad you liked the shoe link! Especially when the kiddos start to get up on all fours and crawl the shoes are helpful b/c it gives them traction that socks can't (though bare feet are easiest for learning to crawl in DS's opinion).

Txfish: Glad to hear an update on your little girl and how she's growing so well!

6 month growth spurt: I was in 6 month growth spurt hell last night - DS ate frantically every 2 hours the *whole dang night*. He always has a day like this when it's growth spurt time, but i will be glad when this one is over - hopefully it won't last more than a day or two.

[Kopper]

6 month growth spurt: I was in 6 month growth spurt hell last night - DS ate frantically every 2 hours the *whole dang night*. He always has a day like this when it's growth spurt time, but i will be glad when this one is over - hopefully it won't last more than a day or two.

My DS did the same thing last night. He had been sleeping at least until 3am but last night he woke up at midnight and nursed every 1-2 hours. Hopefully this is just a growth spurt thing. DS has started kicking me a lot while he is nursing so it makes it hard for me to go back to sleep. I try holding his legs but he will have none of it.

[LittleStar]

DS has started kicking me a lot while he is nursing so it makes it hard for me to go back to sleep. I try holding his legs but he will have none of it.

Interesting - H has been doing this too, as well as hitting me with his free arm. Not angrily, more like he's bored (kinda like twiddling your fingers). :p

Love those shoes you posted Sevilla. We need something like those - H is always pulling his socks off at school.

H has been waking up in the 4 am range the last few nights. Maybe a growth spurt? I feed him and he goes right back to sleep. I've started doubting my milk supply and wondering if I should give him a few ounces of formula at night to help tide him over. I don't know - I'm just musing... My freezer stash is slowly dwindling b/c I've started sending 3 6 oz. bottles to school with H. We'll probably start supplementing with some formula in the next several weeks. And starting solids :eek:

[Sevilla]

LittleStar - my DS has just learned how to slap his hands on things and likes experimenting with that. I think that they are just figuring out how to use their limbs so they're experimenting with different types of movement and reactions. Little scientist babies ;).

[Jane&Andy]

6 month growth spurt? I really don't have any idea when to expect the growth spurts now but this makes sense. He's been waking up at 4 or 5am to eat lately. He's been going to bed earlier too so it could be that but he hasn't been in the best of moods lately so a growth spurt sounds about right.

Playgroup went well today - less people than expected came. Poor Joey was up too long and then only napped for 30min after everyone left, so its been a long afternoon.

[Sal03]

Jennifer it's funny how we all have the same stuff. Dylan LOVED Tad. now he is in Katie's room. Dylan's room is all different now. The piggybank (yes with a train) is way out of his reach now and that moon lamp does not even work anymore. It's funny to look back at pictures of when Dylan was Katie's age.
How was yesterday?? I was thinking of you. I am sure dropoff was hard but then I hope he had fun!

[JenniferEC]

Sal - Yesterday went pretty well. I snuck out when he was washing his hands and then almost lost it in the car. It was a nice break though! And I loved his smile when he saw me when I picked him up. We do have a lot of the same stuff. It's nice when you can reuse toys. Oh, and I ordered that bundler from Gap. :)

Going to try and order a carseat today. I can't make up my mind which print I want.


ETA: Several sites have Britax on sale this week with no tax and no shipping so I got my cowmooflage!

[Kopper]

Jacob is teething! :eek: :eek: I don't know why I am so suprised but I am. My baby is growing up. tee hee! :D I called my IBCLC to talk about why he is having a lot of trouble going back to sleep in the middle of the night and maybe if I should supplement him then (I only supplement during the day). She said maybe he is teething so I felt his gums and there were two sharp places. They totally weren't there this morning. His bottom two broke through the gums sometime durning the day today. They still have a long way to go but you can see the white and feel the edges. I hadn't even thought about him teething yet. :o Hopefully that's why his sleep has been so messed up the last 2 weeks with the exception of a few nights. I gave him an ice cube in his Baby Safe Feeder and he loved it. Why is this so bitter sweet for me? On the one hand I'm happy excited and the other hand I'm sad... :confused:

[Jane&Andy]

boy do I hate growth spurts - but its wonderful when they end. I have my happy baby back. :)

Kopper - I know what you mean. Its so much fun to watch them grow and change but at the same time I miss my tiny little newborn.

[Sevilla]

Kopper - that's exciting he's teething, and i understand being a little sad about it too. We have a babysafe feeder too but haven't used it yet - but i love the idea of putting an ice cube in it to help with teething!

[Jane&Andy]

Joey had his 6 month WBV today.
Weight: 14lb 12oz (10%)
Length: 26in (30%)
Head: 43cm (25%)

[shania0474]

Help! We seem to be going through a bunch of developmental/growth spurts in our household.

G's first tooth popped out after a week of increased fussiness... which was made worse by an intense growth spurt--he woke up to eat/get tylenol every 3-4 hours at night! We had to return his last box of size 3 diapers to Target to get size 4s and I had to pack away most of the 9-12 months (except Carter's, which runs big) clothes for the 12-18 months :eek: A few days ago, he started crawling backwards (gets very frustrated because he wants to go forward but can't figure out how) and he's now chowing down solids a lot better than his older brother! :)

As for David, he's decided that he wants to be potty trained (I'd been hoping I could wait till he was 2.5 or 3yo so I could potty train both boys together being the lazy mom I am :p ) but the boy decided to (literally) take matters into his own hands. When he wakes up in the morning, he screams "mommy! daddy!", and if we take too long, he takes off his diaper and pees all over his crib! Then he jumps out of his crib!!! :eek: At night, after his bath, he runs behind G's crib and pees on the floor! I now run to get the potty both times and make a big deal when he pees in it (of course he wants to stand and pee like daddy so we struggle a little bit before he agrees to sit). Yesterday, he got his own food from the fridge and fed himself! I was very proud of him but also almost in tears... where has my baby gone???? He's not even two yet!!! (Which reminds me I need to call Gymboree about his birthday party. BBL)

[jeeplover]

Shania-Wow I can't believe all that is going on in your household! It sounds like G definitely wants to be like his big brother with how he is growing and developing.

Jane-Glad that the playgroup went well!

************************************************** *
Well we are leaving K with the IL's tonight. This will be the 2nd time that MIL will watch him and I still don't like the idea of leaving him with her but don't really think that taking a 5 month old to the American Idol concert is a good idea.

K has been constipated the last week so I gave him prune juice yesterday and man this morning did it work! Thank god though because he was just miserable yesterday at our playdate. So instead of giving him rice cereal I switched him to oatmeal in hopes that it might not cause the same problem guess we will see!

[Jane&Andy]

Shania - wow! what a big boy you have! Joey is still in size 2 diapers and some 3-6month clothes! Boys can be so hard to potty train - hopefully David will be easy since he seems so eager to do it. How old is he now? I think both of my nephews were close to 3 before they were fully potty trained.

Jeeplover - hope you have fun at the concert. We're leaving Joey with my MIL next month for the first time ever so we can go to a wine festival. I'm nervous but at the same time excited to get to go out.

Joey doesn't like peas. Poor baby, its only the first day of peas - 4 more to go. The worst part though is wiping him down afterwards, you'd think I was beating him with that damp cloth. :rolleyes:

flying - Joey and I are flying to Chicago next Monday ALONE (DH will be with us on the return flight). So if any RO's have any travel tips for me it would be much appreciated! Luckily its just a 2hr flight with no layover.

[JenniferEC]

Jane - We must have similar size babies. We're still in size 2 diapers and 3-6 month clothes. Marin still has some 0-3 that still fits. It's been a while since I've flown with a baby, so I don't have any advice, but good luck with the flight. I'm sure Joey will be an angel for you. :)

shania - You've got a lot going on! We've got the opposite problem with potty training. Caden will sit on the potty all day long but will only go in a diaper. He's afraid to "let go" of his pee. I'm guessing he's just not ready. Hopefully you can get D excited about doing it in the potty. They sure do grow up quick!

solids - For those that have already started, did you skip right to veggies or did you do cereal or oatmeal first? I'm thinking I might go straight to veggies this time, but I'm on the fence. Caden started on rice cereal but I know it doesn't have much value nutrition wise.

[jrsygirl]

jane are you doing each veggie for a full week? Just curious because our ped said we could do two a week. We did all the cereal and started fruits- we'll start veggies next week.

I don't blame Joey;) I'm not all that fond of peas myself!

[jrsygirl]

shania you have a big boy! Cole is a twin and was a preemie but he is 17lbs and still in size 2 diaoers and 3-6 clothes.

[Jane&Andy]

Jennifer - I think Joey and Marin have been weighing in pretty close to each other at their WBVs IIRC. Joey has outgrown most of his 3-6 month clothes by length.

solids - I did rice cereal first. We're working on peas now but he doesn't like them. At first I was just trying randoms fruits and veggies (did pears and carrots) but then the ped said to do green veggies first, then yellow/orange and then fruit. So far pears was the only thing he liked. My sister said she liked mixing in cereal with the jarred foods to make it more nutritious. So thats what I've been doing. We're going to try oatmeal cereal soon to see if he likes it better.

jrsygirl - my ped said to try each new thing for 5 days. The paperwork she gave me actually says 5-7 but she said 5 was enough.

[jrsygirl]

i think its funny how every doctor has their own advice..Some say veggies first, some say fruit, some say colors..etc.

[Jane&Andy]

i think its funny how every doctor has their own advice..Some say veggies first, some say fruit, some say colors..etc.

it is. I was lurking in the March 2006 thread and they're all doing it differently too. I'd really rather do fruit first. he liked that. But my ped said that you should do veggies first b/c if you start with the tastier fruits than they won't eat the veggies. But my sister said her kids never liked the veggie purees anyway but did fine with table foods. I figure we'll give peas and green beans a try anyway now before moving on to tastier foods. I'm not gonna sweat it if he doesn;t like them.

I had started making baby foods but don't have any green veggies made yet. I can't get excited about making them if he's just going to hate them. So I may just do pre-made with those.

[mel7dog]

Finally checking back in! I have been reading along, but not posting since we were away. Ben learned two new things while we were away last week: raspberries and grabbing his feet and rolling, too cute. Not much else going on. Still waking 1-2 times a night to BF, but going right back to sleep. We won't be starting solids till 6 months, but I am excited for when we do! We are also going to start baby signing at 6 months as well. Benjamin is still a happy playful baby and everyone tells me how well behaved he is, so we're hoping it keep up!

Jennifer - What sites had the best Brtiax deals? TIA!

[JenniferEC]

mel - albeebaby.com (http://www.albeebaby.com)had the best prices with no tax and free shipping. Other sites had them on sale too but not as cheap.

[shania0474]

Jane David is 22 months (2yo in November). He's a pretty tall baby but was never as *robust* as G so his clothes fit longer. Have fun in Chicago and like I said before, breastfeed during take-off and landing to help with the ear pressure and it should (hopefully) be smooth sailing all the way. Good luck!

solids with both boys we started with rice cereal first (because it is smoother consistency, easier to digest, doesn't contain allergens--some oatmeal contain traces of wheat, plus Earth's Best uses brown rice which is more nutritious than white rice). Then I started with jarred sweet potatoes, then homemade sweet potatoes (cooked then pureed in blender with EBM), then apples, then oatmeal, then pears, now carrots (we try each for 4-5 days). We give multiple foods a day so for now, his eating schedule goes something like this:

7am wake
7:30am breastfeed
8:30am fruit (currently apples or pears)
(nap at 9am)
10am (or 10:30, whenever he wakes up) 6oz EBM in bottle
12 noon veggie (currently carrots)
1pm breastfeed and put down for 2nd nap
3pm (or 3:30 or 4 depending on when he woke up from 2nd nap) breastfeed and put down for 3rd nap
4:30 (or whenever he wakes up) 3-4oz EBM with a little oatmeal (in bowl)
6pm 6-7oz EBM with a little rice cereal in bottle
7:30 breastfeed and put to sleep

Overall, he's taking 15-17 oz of EBM a day and since I'm not pumping as much as I used to (laziness plus empty bbs) I have used up quite a bit of my freezer stash... :(

ETA summary: 3 solids (in bowl/jar) a day; breastfeed around naps and bedtime; EBM twice a day. Gosh, he eats a lot!

[Sal03]

Jane I had to come in and tell you Katie is climbing all over me making herself laugh right now sucking on my face!!

solids we started with oatmeal a week ago. she has maybe had 3 tablespoons of it since with breatmilk. we are starting slow and I'll get more serious about it saturday hen she is officially 6 months. we'll go to veggies first. I remember dylan loved the veggies and oarmeal mixed

Kopper I hear ya. I am so sad that Katie is turning 6 months saturday. I can't believe my baby is getting so big so fast

Flying with baby portable DVD player! if you don't have one, borrow one and bring baby einstein! hopefully he will sleep most of the way. also advise getting him a seat, so much easier. or at least try and get an empty flight so you can have an empty seat next to you. also must nurse or give bottle at takeoff and landing. honestly it should not be too bad at this early non-mobile age.

[bctoledo]

Finally checking back in! We went on vacation last week and then my parents were in town for our birthdays. Please change my and DH's age to 26

Solids We started with rice cereal and have started with some vegetables and fruit. He has liked peas the best so far.

Teething Ben's first tooth broke through this past weekend. I can't believe how much it hurts when he bites us!

Rolling over Ben hasn't rolled over yet. He'll roll from his back to his side, but seems to have no interest in going the whole way. I feel like he's behind but my friends have told me it's normal that he hasn't done it yet.

Flying We've flown a couple times with Ben. We lucked out with having empty seats near us, so we just laid him down like we would for a nap, gave him his blanket and he was normally out before we took off. We scheduled our flights to coinside with his nap schedule.

[LittleStar]

H has started sucking on his toes :eek:

We'll probably start solids in another few weeks when H is about 6 months. I could start now, but we're going on vacation next week and then DH will be gone on a business trip and I want him here to share the fun :p

Starting last night, H has been trying to pull my nipple off when he nurses - ow! He doesn't have any teeth yet (thank goodness), but he bites down with his gums and pulls back. I wonder why he's doing that. And it's not just at the end when he's full.

I was going to buy the britax marathon from albeebaby (thanks JenniferEC for the info on the sale) but I couldn't tell if the cowmooflage that was on sale was the 2006 or the 2005 (and I want the 2006). I need to call them.

[Jane&Andy]

Sal - thats so cute that Katie laughs when trying to suck on your face. Joey is still doing it to me whenever the mood strikes him but it doesn't make him laugh. That's an excellent idea to bring the DVD player - I do have one (DH bought it for me b/c I hate long car rides).

bctoledo - we didn't have many flight options (flying with airline miles for 1 ticket) but when we leave Monday it will be naptime-ish. When we come back it'll be way past bedtime, that should be interesting. :rolleyes:

LittleStar - Joey has been doing that too lately, but only to lefty. :rolleyes:

Shania - wow, thats great that D is showing an interest in potty training before he's even 2!

today's big adventure - taking the dog to the vet with Joey in tow! The dog just needs his kennel cough vaccine so it should be quick and easy - I hope!

[relly]

I’m still here, been reading along when I can. I especially love to see all the pics of our adorable babies. It’s amazing to see how big they’ve all gotten.

I’ve been back to work full time since June 30th. I so wish I could be a SAHM but we need the health insurance from my job and the money too. Going to work stinks, each and every day I have to drive by the beach on my way to and from work, and there always seems to be a Mom pushing her stroller. I miss walking my babies daily so, so much. We used to go for a 2 hour walk every single day, rain or shine.

We had a terrific summer. We went to a big family reunion in August, it was in Cooperstown, which was a 6 hour drive. The twins were fantastic travellers, they slept all the way both times. They also had no problem sleeping in their pack n play for the first time. The rest of the summer has been spent with my family, either here at our house or day trips or overnite to theirs, they only live 1 hour away so its pretty easy.

DH and I went out last Friday night for the very first time. My parents babysat. We went to a cocktail party at Coastal Living Magazine’s show house. We stayed much longer than we planned, but had fun. There was plenty to eat and drink, caught up with some old friends who were so happy to hear all about the twins. We sat out on the porch and just chatted and relaxed.

The twins are doing very well. They both have been the very best babies, we are so incredibly lucky.

Here are the stats from our 6 month Dr. visit yesterday on their 6 month birthday:

Brycen: 16 lbs. 6 oz., 26 inches, head 43 cm

Devon: 16 lbs. 3 oz., 26.5 inches, head 44 cm

I don’t pay much attention to the percentiles, since they were preemies and they’ve been so low. However, they do improve when you correct it 5 weeks for their adjusted age. What’s been most important to me is that they are growing at a nice steady pace and our Dr. is very pleased with that.

Tonight we’ll start the rice cereal. Tomorrow they’ll get sippy cups with water, not expecting them to drink all that much of it, but the Dr. wanted us to introduce them to cups. They still will get breastfed in the morning, and 4 - 8 oz bottles of formula throughout the day.

[April'06Moms]

Updated to here

[jrsygirl]

please please please tell me that this 6 month growth spurt will be over soon!! It has been 3 days and the twins have been eating ever 1.5- 2 hours and I mean chowing down!! for example: Cole ate 7oz at 4:30/ at 5:00 had 12tbs of cereal, half a jar of apples, then had 6.5 oz at 6:30, went to bed and was up at 8 and had another 7oz!!
kill me please. i think it might even be worse than when they were newborns!!
and yes it is 2 am and I am posting. Since they ate at 8 they have eaten 2 more times!!!

[Jane&Andy]

jrsygirl - that sounds REALLY rough. I hope the growth spurt ends soon. It lasted about 6 days with Joey - but it was never that extreme.

[LittleStar]

Hope everyone had a good weekend! I have a few questions:
For those of you who have babies with teeth :D , when did the first one pop through? H has been soooo fussy these last couple of days and really gnawing on his fingers (and anything else he can get in his mouth). I *think* it might be his teeth, but he's only 5 months, 1 week, so a little early?

Anyone know if you can take ice packs on a domestic flight? We're going on vacation later this week, and I know I can take breastmilk, but wasn't sure about the ice packs to keep it cold. H is exclusively breastfed, I don't nurse in public, but I'm not planning to take my pump (just a few bottles of bm (just in case). Am I going to regret not having my pump?

We went looking for a high chair yesterday. I'm leaning towards getting a plain wooden one, except that H isn't sitting up on his own yet so I'm not sure how he'd do with the straight back (as opposed to the other highchairs where the backs seem to recline a bit). We ended up just buying spoons, a sippy cup, and plastic bowls. And this morning I bought the box of rice cereal. We're still a few weeks from starting solids, but I'm just getting ready.:p

[Sal03]

jrsygirl that sounds crazy! I hope things are better

littlestar 5 months is just right for when teething starts. Dylan was like that around 5 months and the first two came through at 6 months. Katie has been like that, but they have not popped through yet. just waiting!

Kate turned 6 months on saturday. it was hard for me that my baby is getting big so fast. I know from Dylan how insanely fast it goes so I am trying so hard this time to take advantage of every second holding her and giving her kisses. I know it won't be long before she is wiggling out of my arms to crawl and walk. :( She had her 6 month check up today and is 15.14 pounds and 26". That is 50th percentile in both so she is evening out a bit. She has only had tiny spoonfuls of oatmeal 3 times so now that she is 6 months I am going to step it up now. I gave her some more today and made it thicker and where she was spitting it out before when it was really thin - this she gobbled up! So I think we will do cereal twice a day for a week then move on to green veggies. Oh in Dylan news, he absolutely loves school. I am so happy! It took a week of him having a hard time when I left...and now the past few dropoffs he is too busy to even say goodbye to me. crazy but it makes me so happy that he loves it. Here are two pictures...one of Katie at 6 months and one of Dylan happily going to school!
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f298/rebeccag202/IMG_2708.jpghttp://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f298/rebeccag202/IMG_2736.jpg

ETA: SORRY I can not get the size right on these pics!!

[JenniferEC]

Littlestar - Did you find out about the carseat? I hope I'm not getting a 2005 model.

jrsygirl - Hope things have calmed down a bit!

Sal - Great pics! They look so much alike. Katie is doing a great job of sitting up. Glad to hear Dylan likes school. He looks so happy in that picture.

Naps have been going great. Marin has learned to put herself to sleep with the aquarium. All I have to do is put her in her crib drowsy and facing the fish and she's out within minutes. I wish the naps were longer but I'll take what I can get.

Marin isn't quite 6 months, but she's had a few bites of squash. She seems to be doing okay so far. For some reason I'm not in a hurry to get her on solids. I think it may be because she is possibly my last and I'm not ready for her to grow up.

[Jane&Andy]

Sal - your kids are adorable!

Joey and I are visiting my sister in Chicago this week. We took him to get his portrait done yesterday and got some great photos. My sister has a 3 yr old and 20 month old and Joey just loves watching them and smiling at them. Its fun to watch them interact.

Joey is doing really well with the solids. We just started giving him a sippy cup of water last night, he really seems to like it. I took the stopper out so he can get water without sucking on it - which works well b/c he gnaws on it instead of sucking.

[Sevilla]

Hey Jane! You picked the BEST time to come to Chicago - our weather is so gorgeous right now :). That's cool that Joey is doing well with solids. We let David try some banana last weekend and he loved it.

Sal - Cute pics of your kids, as always!!!

Jennifer: So glad that Marin is putting herself to sleep on her own, we're big fans of the aquarium here too but use it during diaper changes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
David is 6 months old today!

[mel7dog]

Sal - Love the pics! Dylan is so cute heading off to school with his little backpack!

Jennifer - That's great that she is putting herself to sleep :)

You all are making me excited to start solids! Ben seems ready, but he just turned 5 months so we are waiting till 6 months. We did get him a sippy cut with a soft spoud to practice with water and he loves playing with the cup. Ben also must be going through an early growth spurt because he has been eating every 1-1.5 hours for the last 2 days. I weighed him on the 26th (5 months) on our home scale and he was a bit over 18 lbs :eek:

[JenniferEC]

Just want to post a pic of Marin in her new car seat (before we put it in the car). I know she is in blue, but when we are at home she wears some of Caden's old clothes.

I'm not sure why these are so big. I need to figure out Photobucket.

Okay, I've been playing around on Photobucket and I don't like it. How do you size the pics so they are normal? When I go to Edit, it only gives me a few choices and none of them are the right size. This is too much work!

[mel7dog]

Jennifer - Oh Marin looks so little in the big carseat. I love the Cow print, but DH wants something more plain so we're still trying to agree on one :rolleyes:

[jrsygirl]

mel we both have little chunkers. Cole is up to 18.5 lbs..the Dr was like " we definitely won't be monitoring him as a preemie anymore :p Paige seems so light compared to him!

jennifer i wanted the moo print for paige but her jacket is cow print from gymboree and DH thought it might be overdoing it. Of course he didnt think that about Cole's seat choice:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/bama.jpg
(university of Alabama)

Paige got this one:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/albee-baby_1912_20341638.gif
its a really pretty sage green.

and because I don't think I've posted pics in a while here are my munchkins at about 5.5 mos.

Cole:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/cole-2.jpg
Paige:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/paige-2.jpg

They are both sitting up now- Cole is trying his hardest to crawl and pull himself up. He turns on his mobile in his crib by getting up on all fours and reeaaching with one arm.. so cute!!

We're all doing ok. The twins are 6mos this week. I'm still working FT although I'm considering my options right now. I'm just mentally and physically exhausted. P&C are not sleeping well still and being up 2-3 nights a week and working full time and bian travelling are not good mixes.
This sounds horrible but I have my first business trip on Thursday (just overnight) and I am so looking forward to a night of sleep!

[Jane&Andy]

Jennifer - such cute kiddos! I love Marin's outfit. I like imagestation.com for posting photos here - I think its more user friendly than photobucket.

jrsygirl - such cute babies you have! They have the cutest cheeks! I'm sorry you are so exhausted, I hope they start sleeping better for you soon.

We're home from Chicago now. We had a wonderful time and like Sevilla said, the weather was fabulous. :) Joey had a good time with his cousins although he caught his first cold. We were all sick so I knew he was doomed. The flight home was miserable last night, they over pressurized the cabin and it was extremely painful for the ears. The poor baby screamed and screamed.

Anyway, I had pictures done while we were there so I wanted to share a few (these are just scanned and cropped by me, the originals looks better)
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid216/p95b4f3e81f93fb92e333ad48b8a6e6e2/ecb67ead.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid216/p34c9ef9f0bcfbdb7f89a14f0e1572bf2/ecb67eab.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid216/p381117479a05e103b63dfab378bcdeb6/ecb67e2b.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid216/p1a516d2aac09340e285531e2c37fc2e3/ecb67e05.jpg
and I got this collage
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid216/p2abb216bfbfbf6a59f6817223c29b686/ecb67e31.jpg
considering what a crappy mood he was in that morning I was really impressed with how many good shots they got of him.

[jrsygirl]

jane, i love those pics of him!! they are great..where did you get them done? (I have a freind that lives there that I'm sure would love a rec.)

[Jane&Andy]

thanks jrsygirl. :) It was at Kid's Portraits by Picasso in Skokie, IL. 847-676-1006 I can't recommend them enough. It was VERY expensive but I think it was absolutely worth it (but not something I'd do very often). My sister takes her kids there periodically and ALWAYS gets fabulous photos.

[jeeplover]

Jane-I love the pictures of Joey! They turned out wonderfully!

Jennifer-Your kids are so cute! The cowprint car seat is adorable!

Jrsygrl-Sorry the twins aren't sleeping well! I can't believe our little ones turn 6 months this week-boy time flies!

**************************************************
Kyle got his two bottom teeth last week-this teething thing SUCKS! He is doing much better now though, he hates the teething rings and would much rather gnaw on his thumb. He will be 6 months on Thursday :eek: ! He is eating cereal once a day still and I don't plan on starting anything else until next week after I talk to his pediatrician since he is experiencing alot of constipation. He tries to use his sippy cup but definitely loves to play with it. He isn't sitting up yet but is scooting around on his butt or his belly to get his toys.

[jrsygirl]

jeeplover give him some barley cereal..it definitely helps with Coles constipation :) maybe too much so!

[JenniferEC]

mel - DH didn't want the cow print either. I had to do some serious convincing. We looked at the cow print and a pink flower print at BRU and the pink one was filthy. I figure I can keep the cow one cleaner and I like that it's not black and white, but black and khaki. Good luck picking one.

jrsygirl - I like the seats you chose. I saw they just came out with the school seats. I hope you can get some rest on Thursday! Enjoy it!

Jane - Those are great pics! Very professional! I like the one with his foot in the air. :) Is Joey over his cold yet?

jeeplover - Sorry about the constipation. Caden used to get it bad, but I've lucked out with Marin. She's on schedule and hasn't had a solid poop yet. Good luck with the teething.

[jeeplover]

jeeplover give him some barley cereal..it definitely helps with Coles constipation :) maybe too much so!

Does Cole really like the taste of it? I am just afraid that he won't like the taste especially since he no longer likes prune juice which would help alleviate the problem.

[mel7dog]

Jane - The pictures are amazing! So worth the money imo. We are going to do 6 month ones as well, since we haven't done any pro pics yet :o but will have to settle for Sears as we also have to buy the carseat this month.

Jennifer - Glad to hear it's not white in the cow print. I have never seen it in person since our BRU is terrible!

[Kopper]

Great pictures everyone! :)

Jacob had his 6 month WBV today.
Weight: 6 months: 19.4lbs
Height: 27.5 in

Developments: He still isn't sleeping well since his bottom two teeth have decided to break through. I'm hoping he will start sleeping again soon. We started solids Saturday and so far he has had carrots and bananas. I am going to make a bunch of food for him this weekend. He can sit up for 1 minute or more at a time and is getting better every day. I think he would like to crawl but it will be awhile. I have 6 month portraits scheduled for the 12th. :)

[Jane&Andy]

thanks Mel. :) The portraits were a big splurge, I don't think Santa will be bringing me anything this year - but it was worth it.

I made a bunch of baby food for Joey but we lost power while we were out of town last week and it all thawed. So I have to start over now. I made a bunch more today.

Joey has started tucking his knees up under him when he's on his belly. He still has a ways to go before he crawls but its still fun to see him make progress on that direction. He still can't sit up on his own for long, he'd really rather stand.

[LittleStar]

Hi! We got back from vacation last night. We had a nice time, but it was definitely different from pre-baby vacations. We used miles to upgrade on the flights, so we had plenty of room and H did pretty well. Basically, he nursed/cuddled the whole time. What he did NOT like was riding in the car. Everytime we went somewhere, I had to sit in the back seat with him and sing Itsy Bitsy Spider :rolleyes: He slept really well at night, but probably b/c he barely napped during the day and we (not me, my family) kept him up til 9:30 or so when his usual bedtime is 7:45. But, all in all, it went well, and I'm glad to have that first trip under our belt and know we can do it.

[ginandchris]

Hi everyone,

I'm still here. Been soo busy since I went back to work on Sept 13th. My immediate department is still not a great place to work, but I need the income. So, I'm still looking for a job. Hopefully I'll get a higher paying job soon so we can get a van.

Other than that Deborah is doing pretty well. She still is sleeping thru the night, although she does stir sometimes. I think like everyone else here she is teething. I haven't seen any teeth break thru yet, but she is putting everything in her mouth.

We will probably take more pics of her when she turns 6 months as well. She is doing really well with grandparents since they watch her while we are at work. She took to her new routine pretty quickly.

I hope everyone is doing well. hopefully I'll subscribe to photobucket sometime so i can post some pics.

[Jane&Andy]

bumping us up from page 2.

Its a c