May 2006 Mommies - Our Mayflowers are Blooming!

[Pink_Converse]

Is anyone going on vacation next summer when our babies are one? Where are you going?

[kristin9903]

Vacation We're going to Hawaii. We're not taking DS, though. We're only going to be there for a week and the 5 hour time difference might be too much for him. He's staying with family.

[Parrothead]

Vacation - We'll be taking DD to Kauai in Sept.

[MMHinCA]

Vacation: We are going to Maui in November (for Thanksgiving). DD will be going with us!

STTN: Is my DD the only one not STTN? Shouldn't she be STTN by now? She is still waking 1-2x a night. Last night she was up at 3:30am and then 6:15am. She usually goes back down at the 6am waking but today she was not going back down.

[shortcake]

Hawaii - Ya'll make me very jealous! No vacations planned here, just a long, stressful family visit starting tomorrow. It will be nice to see family but did I mention stressful?

STTN - Nope. And MMH I think one waking (3:30 am - 6:15 seems like maybe waking for the day) is pretty acceptable at this age. Is DD BF? That makes a difference too sometimes, I hear. I wish DS was STTN - he did 2 nights ago but most of the times it's 2 wakings right now. Last night was 12:30 and 5:30 up for the day. (He also woke at 3:30 but got himself settled w/o me going in, which was a big deal for me!) He's been doing so badly lately that this is good, I can deal with this for a while - but we leave tomorrow for a 2 week trip so who knows what will happen.

[Bloomwood]

vacation: January Maui with DD; March Florida w/o DD; April Florida with DD; June Maine with DD; July Newport, RI with DD; August Sweden and maybe another country with DD. She needs a frequent flyer card.

ETA: also maybe skiing in Idaho in February with DD.

[Parrothead]

STTN - Nope. She goes down around 7 or 7:30 and usuallyends to wakes between 10 and 11 to be rocked to sleep. Then, she's up to eat between 1 and 2. If she eats closer to 1, then she'll wake again around 5 to eat again and goes back down until 7 or so. If she wakes to eat around 2, she'll wake again around 6 is is up for the day at that point.

I believe that 1 waking to eat is "acceptable." For me, 2 is not. We need to CIO at those 10-11 wakings, but I am a chicken and fear that she's wet/dirty b/c of the introduction of solids and water. So, I go to her. I am such a softy!

QOTD - Separation Anxiety - Anyone else dealing with this? DD is a MESS. She freaks when I leave her w/ her sitter. I started w/ her about a month ago. She was fine for a few visits, but now DD flips out. I think that she got freaked out when I had to leave while she was napping and the sitter was the one to go get her when she woke. Then, DD couldn't find me and freaked. Now, she seems to associate the sitter w/ me being gone and cries constantly while I am gone unless she's outside in her bjorn. Anyone else going through this? Any thoughts on how to make this better?

[Em7.31.04]

STTN: DS has been STTN since about 6 weeks old...Now he's up to 12-14 uninterrupted hours at night. Don't hate me.... :-) He's FF though, which I think can make a difference.

Vacation: We are going to GA in February to visit my extended family, and we're going to Hawaii in July with my parents. Both trips are with DS. We can't wait!!

Separation Anxiety: Nope, DS doesn't really seem to care. He has a sitter 3 days/week and loves her. Doesn't notice/care when we leave. I'm sure our time will come, though...

[Bloomwood]

STTN/Separation Anxiety: I think DD is experiencing a little SA as she has been waking up crying a few nights. The first time I tried feeding her and she wanted none of it so I just rocked her and she was content. Now, I just get up and rock her to calm her down and she usually goes back down pretty easily. Aside from that she is a champ sleeper (7-7 at night, a 3 hour am nap and a 2 hour pm nap). I also can't be out of her sight during the day, well, not me per se, but she needs someone there.

[MMHinCA]

Hope everyone had a nice holiday! DD has been sick since Friday and was diagnosed with croup today! Our first Christmas wasn't as fun as we had hoped it would have been. Poor baby girl is so miserable! :(

[Em7.31.04]

I hope everyone is having great holidays!

Is anyone else feeling a tad bit overwhelmed at the amount of toys that DC got for Christmas?? I swear, DS received every electronic, light up, noise making, music playing, obnoxious toy on the market. And we didn't want him to have many of those kinds of toys at all...Oy. :eek: We are of course so grateful for our families' generosity, but still, it's a bit much! Our house is suddenly feeling v.e.r.y small...

[Mrs U]

Merry Christmas/ Happy New Year!

Santa brought us 2 gifts- a tooth and crawling. Well tooth #1 is just poking through!:D The dog has been helping in the crawling dept by leaving his food for David to go after. :rolleyes:

Toys David got blocks which is his favorite at the moment to chew on. The other attention getter is Pooh riding the turtle (activated by a rattle). Other than that we tried to keep the toys to a limit since we received a lot second hand.

Next week we go and pick up David's Swiss passport- finally we can leave the boarders! :D

[Standrea]

It has taken me DAYS to put away all of the stuff from under the tree. Santa didn't even bring that much, but the generosity of family and friends has been amazing! Abbie sounds like she got alot of the same stuff that Jack did:rolleyes: !! Now, birthday partie's aren't very far off!!


Sleep regression-
Abbie has slept through the night for 5 weeks straight (8:30pm-8:30am), and all of a sudden, she's been waking up 2ce a night again....Ayeyaya...

On other news, I started Metformin again ... let's hope abbie becomes a big sister soon!!

[Parrothead]

Toys - DD received an obscene amount of gifts. I need to get DH to build some shelves in her closet, move her swing into storage, and buy some bins for her room so that I have room for everything!

Sleep Regression - DD has never slept through the night :( She's still up twice. For the last few weeks, I have only been feeding her at the 2nd waking (around 2am), but last night when she woke up the 1st time, she FREAKED out until I fed her. Is there a growth spurt around now?

DD is crawling like a champ and just cut tooth #3 (top right lateral incisor) and it looks like the top left lateral incisor is also through. There are swollen white bumps where the central incisors will be coming so it looks like she's been working on FOUR teeth at once. That explains her crankiness over the holiday!!! Here nose is very runny now and she's drooling up a storm. Lovely!

[MMHinCA]

Toys - Luckily our family did not go overboard. Plus we are moving at the end of the month so we left a couple of the bigger toys at my MIL's house so we wouldn't have to repack them.

Sleep regression - BIG TIME! Since being sick since last Friday she would only fall asleep in my arms some nights and would require a lot of rocking on others. Plus she was up a lot with coughing and just not feeling well.

New developments:
~ We can now push our self up to a sitting position from a laying position.
~ We are pretty much crawling... time for baby gates and baby proofing!
~ We are teething like crazy! Her top 2 teeth are coming in and it likes like some of her bottom teeth are coming in too. Fun times with drooling and runny nose!

[jarm]

Just out of curiosity, what is everyone's feeding schedule?

[Sneezy]

Hi everyone! Happy post-Chanukah and Christmas and pre-New Year's! I'm down in San Diego at my ILs and have managed to get caught up on the last 2+ months of posting :rolleyes: Sorry to have been MIA.

I must say that all of your DC are so flippin' cute it's ridiculous. I kept sitting here at DH's laptop grinning to the point of people asking me what I was doing.

DD update: Marlowe seems to be catching up and doing well (other than being on her third cold since starting day care). I love her like crazy, but honestly I still feel overwhelmed much of the time! I am back at my "paid" job 40 hours a week out of the house. Anyone else? It's hard, and not necessarily what I'd choose (at least not full time) but it is what it is! Also, DD STTN's half the time and the other half doesn't. I have no idea why or what triggers the good nights vs. bad ones. On the other hand, she generally goes down very easily every night and we have never needed CIO.

I won't reply to stuff from AGES ago, except for a few comments:

6 mo WBV: DD was 15lb, so scooter and pink_converse, you aren't the only ones with little munchkins. (She is still wearing Size 2 swaddlers btw.)

Babywearing: Who else is doing it and what are you using? Kim, how did your mei-tai work out? I got a handmade MT but it's very much like a BabyHawk. I wore it for 3+ hours straight yesterday at a parade and DD did fabulously and I felt good too. But I've only worn her in the front--I'm chicken to put her on my back!!

Feeding: I do most of my whining on the 4-8 mo. feeding thread, but I will respond that we do lunch and dinner, and we are giving her yogurt at this point as well as all kinds of fruits and veggies. We stopped nursing/bottles of EBM at 6 mo. and she drinks 15-22 oz of formula a day (which seems like too little but all she'll do.)

Sitting/Crawling/Standing: DD has just begun to sit on her own really well, but she still hates tummy time and thus does not get anywhere near the point of pushing up or rocking. She does, however, LOVE to jump while being held, and appears to have awfully strong legs.

I have a question: Do any of you not like your pedi? One of my (three) New Year's resolutions is to finally switch pediatricians!!!

Almost done--but wanted to say:
karlatta- Congratulations! (Belatedly.)

Happy New Year everyone!

[Sneezy]

Ok, I had no idea Snapfish had gotten all possessive on us. Trying again to post a shot of Marlowe from a few weeks ago. Once I upload pictures from our holiday trip I'll share one of her actually smiling! :) But in the meantime, here's my little baby doll!

http://images14.fotki.com/v377/free/3ae44/9/912052/4436729/of50332442-vi.jpg?1167460237

[Standrea]

Feeding Schedual-
Abbie nurses when she first wakes up, then an hour later has breakfast (Fruit with either cereal or yogart), then usually nurses again around 11. After her late morning nap, she has lunch (fruit and veggies), she'll either nurse or go down for her afternoon nap, and nurse when she gets up. She usually eats dinner between 6 and 6:45 (Tofu, Brown Rice, and some sort of veggitable), then she'll nurse before bed at 8:30ish. She has been having puffs,pirates booty/veggie, zwieback toast, or Biter biscuits as well.

Sneezy-nice to hear from you! I think you have to use photobucket to post pictures now!!

Sleep regression-Abbie still has no teeth, and has a bit of a runny nose. She was up 2ce last night/this morning. I wonder if she's teething as well. The only thing we can physically see coming down is her left top incisor, but it's still pretty high....

[Bloomwood]

Sneezy - I logged on briefly last night and was able to see your pic, but now I can't. :confused: At any rate, she is so unbelievably cute. I'm so happy for you that everything has gone so well. Will she have residual effects or is it all in the past?

MMH - you are moving to OC, right? I hope it goes well; I know you've been looking forward to it!

Mrs U - congrats on the passport!!

babywearing - we aren't really babywearers in the granola sense (per the poll on chit chat) but I just got a new ergo carrier. I still have to walk my beloved puppy even in the nasty weather and couldn't figure out how to manage a stroller, leash and umbrella. I got this so I can just "strap her on."


Sleep regression - DD STTN about 99% of the time. That 1% I don't even try to figure out anymore. I'll tell myself "teething" or "growth spurt" with a chuckle because it is my excuse of everything.

colds - knock on wood, but DD has yet to have a single cold. Granted, she isn't in daycare, but we do playgroup once a week and gymboree once a week and I tote her around everywhere. It makes me really happy b/c I stopped BFing at 4.5 mos and was convinced she'd be doomed.

sitting/crawling/standing - She just started scooting last night. Mostly backwards, but she'll figure it out.

Teeth - We got our first tooth for Christmas too! It is so cute. The one next to it is going to pop any day too.

Presents - she got a ton of clothes, but everyone was pretty good about not going overboard on toys. Except one of our couple friends gave her a Lulu the Lamb chair from Babystyle. It is so big for our little house. Not to mention she already has a little rocker with her name on it in the garage. She also got some nice contributions to her college savings. At this rate, we won't have to pay a cent! Nice!!!

hope you all have a fantastic NYE and I look forward to more wonderful fun in '07!!

[MMHinCA]

DD wants to end the year with a bang... she now has double ear infections! Poor thing has had a cold, croup and now 2 ear infections in the last week. What a way to end '06! To top it all off both DH and I are sick! :( :mad:

Bloomwood - We are moving at the end of the month, but we don't know where yet. If DH gets a job he has been interviewing for we will be in Los Angeles and if he doesn't we will be in OC living with my MIL until he does find a job!

[Scooter]

teething: add us to the list who finally got a 1st tooth for Christmas. :) It was very bittersweet for me, though, such a sign that she's growing up. The last 2 days/nights have been a bit hellish, so I'm reallly hoping tooth #2 comes through asap.

babywearing: we use a mei tai and a pouch sling. Both are great. I think we all prefer the mei tai, but the pouch sling is so much easier to put on & take off, you can just kind of throw it over you head instead of tying it all up. It's also nice in the winter to have her all bundled up in the pouch, whereas in the mei tai she likes to stick her little feet out the bottom & that always makes her pant legs pull up and her legs get cold. I've been considering getting a ring sling or one of the slings that's a long piece of fabric and you wrap it around & tie it. I've also heard great things about the Ergo.

crawling, etc, No crawling yet, but so close! She doesn't try on her tummy, she prefers to be sitting up and then launch herself forward onto all fours, and then rock. She has started standing so well that I can let go of her & she balances by holding onto me or the furniture.

[Standrea]

Ohh...i forgot to talk about Babywearing...
I have a wrap, 2 slings, and a snuggly. I'm working on a MeiTei right now. The wrap is my favorite right now, especially since Abbie is inching towards 20 lbs. When we went to cut down our christmas tree, I could hardly feel her! I walked our local mall (1 mi. end to end), and was fine afterward too...We tend to AP, because abbie loves to be worn!

[Em7.31.04]

Feeding: DS still eats about every 2 hours. He eats solids 2x a day, around lunchtime and dinnertime. He's eating stage 2 jarred foods + ones that I've made & frozen. He's just starting chunkier textures like fork mashed bananas & puffs.

Babywearing: We used a Baby Bjorn, pouch sling & Infantino front carrier when he was younger & weighed less. Now we use an Ergo and a homemade ring sling. I love wearing him, especially in the Ergo.

Scooter: We have the Teddy Toes blanket that works great in the carrier to keep DS's legs/feet warm. Baby Legs would also work.

[Kim]

Hope everyone's having a great one!

Super quick post...

Sneezy-I LOVE my mei tai! I highly recommend the back carry. It took me a couple of tries to feel comfortable getting Lila on my back but with a little practice it's like second nature. :) I'm now able to get some stuff done around the house without her little hands grabbing at everything.

[karlatta]

Feeding - DS is eating a bottle every 3-4 hours (6-8 ounces, depending on his mood), and I try to get him solids a couple of times a day. He's still on Stage 1, but we're working on moving up to Stage 2 and homemade foods. He's got some issues with his tongue that are really getting in the way of him eating.

Babywearing - I had to stop babywearing when I started my IVF cycle in November, and I haven't started it up again since I'm now pregnant. My RE doesn't really want me carrying DS around all that much. Fortunately, DS is great at independent play and is content to sit on the floor with a toy while I get stuff done. I'm not sure how it's going to work once he gets more mobile and I get bigger.

[Parrothead]

Happy 2007! To help us celebrate, DD came down w/ croup 2 nights ago (poor little barking seal!) and both DH and I are sick!

Feeding - DD nurses when she wakes up and then eats breakfast (cereal & a fruit or veggie) about 1 hour later. Throughout the day, she nurses every 3-4 hours. At 6pm, she has dinner (again, cereal & a fruit or veggies) and then nurses before her 7 - 7:30 bedtime.

Babywearing - I put DD in the Bjorn here and there, but not all that much.

QOTD: Small blankie - I am 99% sure that there were some posts in this thread or one of our pregnancy threads about small blankies w/ silky edges. I think that they are used as transitional objects. Does anyone have a link to those handy?

QOTD #2: Sleep schedule and time zone changes - We are heading across 3 time zones w/ DD in about 10 days. I would love to try to keep her bedtime/wakeup time generally the same. Any suggestions?

[MMHinCA]

Parrothead - I feel your pain! DD was diagnosed with croup last Tuesday after having a horrible cold over Christmas. Then on Saturday she was diagnosed with double ear infections! My DH and I are sick also. I was at the urgent care yesterday morning and was diagnosed with a sinus and ear infection! Fun times!

Question: What does your DC weigh? At the doctor on Saturday (the on-call doctor) DD weighed in at 15 lbs 2 oz. When I looked at her chart I have at home that is on the 5th %tile. She is 27 inches = 50 %tile. We are wondering if we should be concerned. She has only gained 4 1/2 oz since her 6 month WBV. We have to go back in a week to have her ears checked so I will ask the doctor but I wanted to see what everyone elses littles ones are weighing in at.

Sleep training: We are starting this tonight. DD has been waking up around midnight and 3am. I want to work on cutting these out and getting her to STTN. I think first I will work on the midnight waking and then work on the 3am waking. Anyone have any suggestions?

I am still sick and luckily my DH has been picking up the slack with watching DD. She is feeling much better which is great. She is super busy playing with new toys and crawling everywhere! Time to get some baby gates!

[Bloomwood]

parrothead - I don't have a link, but Little Giraffe makes a small blankie that we use. We also have one by Barefoot Dreams but I prefer the LG one. I think nordstrom.com might sell them.

MMH - sorry to hear A is sick :( DD is a little piggy and is probably about 18+ lbs. I really don't think you have anything to worry about; babies grow at different rates next month she might be way bigger while maybe M won't have packed on anything. As for STing, I say just go for both wakings at once. It is tough and she'll likely cry a couple of nights, but she'll figure it out. Also, most of my playgroup mom's are exclusively BFing and their babies STTN, fwiw. One thing, though...don't go in the room. Once you've decided to let her CIO, don't back down because then it is even worse on her. Good luck!!

[Em7.31.04]

Sleep Training: Good luck, MMH! We did ST in increments, sort of based on Ferber's book. 10 minutes, then we would go in...then a few minutes more...and so on.

Weight: DS was 19lbs, 4oz at his 6 month appt, which was about 2 weeks before his 6 month birthday. I wouldn't worry about size though...ask if the ped is concerned, but I think it's really normal for babies their age to plateau and slow down as they start moving around more. Think about how much exercise they're getting!

[MMHinCA]

STing - Last night was ok... she woke at 10:40pm and CIO til 11:50pm = 1 hour 10 minutes, and then woke at 2:40am and CIO til 3:40am = 1 hour. Lets hope tonight goes a little better!

Weight - I am not too concerned, just curious where she stands compared to others her age. We are also thinking that maybe she has lost a little weight with being sick. She really didn't have an appetite and really only nursed, so maybe now that she is eating a little more she will gain a little back.

[MMHinCA]

STing - Last night DD slept from 7:30pm to 7:45am only squawking for 15 minutes at 5am! :)

Finger foods - How are your DC doing with finger foods? Have you started them? DD has no interest. I tried giving her some puffs and when I would put one in her mouth she would suck on it but when I tried giving one to her to put in her mouth she would either just hold it or throw it on the floor.

[Em7.31.04]

MMH: Go Ainsleigh! Sounds like a great night of sleep for everyone.

Finger Foods: We just started giving puffs a few nights ago. He crunches them with his teeth, lol. We put them in his hand and it usually makes it into his mouth. Usually. :rolleyes:

[Parrothead]

Just rescuing us from the bottom of page 2!

STing - I am NOT the one to ask. DD has never STTN. I am now doing CIOs a bunch and only allowing her to eat 1x and the feeding must occur after 2am. It's hard now though b/c she is sick and working on 3 teeth (it was 4, but that one came through).

Finger Foods - Not yet. Still introducing various jarred stuff. We've done peas, green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, winter squash, bananas, apples, pears, and corn & butternut squash mixed. So far, all she likes are pears and the corn & butternut squash!

[MMHinCA]

STing: Things are a little better, she seems to have cut the midnight waking but we are still working on the 5 am waking.

Night 1: CIO 10:40pm to 11:50pm & 2:40am to 3:40am
Night 2: CIO 5am to 5:15am
Night 3: CIO 5am to 6am
Night 4: CIO on & off from 5am to 6am

[Parrothead]

I got fed up w/ being a slave to DD's erratic naps and have put her on a daytime nap schedule. Now, she goes down at 9am and 1pm. Given her naps are 1 - 1.5 hours, we often violate the Weissbluth 2 hour rule, but I figure she's old enough now.

So far, it is working great and it is improving her night sleep, too! Two nights ago she slept from 8-3 and then 3:30 - 5:45 (less than ideal) and last night she slept from 7-3 and then 3:30 to 6:30. This is a huge improvement from the last month or 2. I am hoping that soon she'll push that 3am feeding out. Patience.

The best part is just having some sort of structure to my day!!!

[smiles33]

Hi ladies! Been reading along but nothing much to report. Just curious whether you have lowered your crib mattresses yet. DD still can't sit on her own but is rolling around like crazy so I'm thinking better to move it now (though I dread figuring out how to take the crib apart!). TIA!

[Scooter]

Finger foods: haven't tried them yet. DD is not a big fan of solids yet, and doesn't even have them everyday. Right now the only ones she's interested in are bananas & applesauce, and I don't want her to get bored of them! She's only got 1 tooth, too (as of today, crossing my fingers this 2nd one comes through tomorrow). So I just think finger foods would be too premature right now.

STTN: not yet! But I've read it's common at this age for them not to STTN unless you chose to ST. We're cosleeping & BFing, so I really don't mind waking up slightly twice a night at this point.

Lowering the mattress: Funny you should mention this, Smiles, because we just did that today! She isn't able to sit or stand up by herself yet, although lend her a finger and she does it just fine. :) I just wanted to be cautious so that the first time she does it by herself isn't when she's alone in her crib! :eek:

[Pink_Converse]

H is so sick! He's had runny eyes, coughing til he pukes, not wanting to eat. He went to the Dr. for it twice last week. And now I'm sick too and DH either has food poisoning or a bug. We have had a horrible night.

Question-Since H has been sick: Yesterday DS ate oatmeal mixed with formula and applesauce, some hplain applesauce, a little water mixed with juice and only 2 oz of formula. Today he's had 3 oz of form. and a little juice/water out of his sippy. He's been peeing and pooping. When should I worry he's not getting enough form./liquids? Should I try to have him take Pedialyte? He just cries and clamps his mouth shut when I offer his bottle most of the time.

[MMHinCA]

Pink_Converse - Sorry H is sick. We went through all of this over Christmas. I have heard as long as they have at least 3 wet diapers a day they should be ok as far as dydration. Hope you guys feel better soon!

[Em7.31.04]

We haven't lowered our crib mattress yet, but it's on our to-do list. DS is just starting to scoot around in his crib, and hasn't ever pulled up but I know it's coming up in the near future. I so don't want to take the crib apart, though.....

[karlatta]

Crib Mattress - We lowered ours quite a while back. Maybe three or four months ago? I have a lot of friends who have older children who would occasionally use our crib for naptime and stuff, so I just lowered it so that the older babies could use it. Then we just kept it lowered for DS - DH and I are both tall, so we were still able to reach over easily to get him in/out.

[Mrs U]

STTN We havent had too much of a problem with that in a long time. David sleeps 8pm- 8:30/9am with little fuss (unless he's teething, then it's a short wake up, cuddle and he's back out)

Lowering Crib That's on my list as well for this week along with baby proofing. I lowered his high chair seat yesterday so he wouldnt scoot back by jumping/using his feet against the table.:rolleyes:

Finger Foods We started giving dried apples to David. He loves them and they are great for teething! The only other finger food that he's had is Zwebacks and dog food(not intentional ;) )

Pink Converse Hope your little man is feeling better!

Naptime! Seems like the only time I can get a shower in without worrying is David getting into trouble.

[Kim]

Hello from sunny Florida! We brought the kids down to my parents' vacation house again. It's so nice to get away!

STTN-Lila is normally a great sleeper unless she's teething. She used to sleep from about 9 to 9 but lately she's been getting up around 8.

Lowering the crib mattress-Haven't done this yet because we haven't used her crib yet since we cosleep. I think when we get back home I'm going to transition her to her crib so we'll lower the mattress. She now pulls herself out of the cosleeper and onto my bed so she can't be left unattended in it anymore. Boo.

food-I'm so much more laid back about solids with Lila than I was with my other kids. Lila's sampled everything from lasagna, ziti, meatballs, pancakes, watermelon. She's tried lots of different things, I just keep her away from things like peanut butter (until she's 3) and seafood. She really enjoys solids, moreso than any of my other kids. She eats them three times a day but her diet still consists mostly of breastmilk since she's only 8 months old.

Pink_Converse-Sorry about your little guy. :( It's definitely normal for them not to eat much when they're sick but I know it can be scary for a parent. I would just continue to monitor his diaper output. That's what's going to tell you if he's hydrated. Pedialyte probably won't hurt but if it's hard to get him to drink formula chances are you're not going to have much luck with Pedialyte either. I would just watch him and then give a call to your pediatrician if he doesn't start eating better soon. Good luck .

[shortcake]

STTN Oh how I wish he would! I think tonight we will try not feeding him at all, or at least no feeding till after 3am (which would be 8 or 9 hours). This is the first time I've been so adamant about it but I am exhausted. It's not so much the one feeding that kills me, it's the 4:15 wake up and will not go back to sleep until I finally get him up at 5:30 because DH can't stand it any more (I was going to leave him in there till 6). I just put him back down (at 6:15) since it has been 2 hours and he is crying again. I hate this so much. DD was a fine sleeper after about 4 months old.

[kristin9903]

STTN No problem here. We had a little regression at 4 months, but it went away in a couple of weeks. Otherwise, he's down by 8:30P and up at 9:00 A.

Crib mattress Haven't lowered it yet. We need to do it.

Finger foods We've tried them, but DS doesn't want to feed himself yet so I've been feeding it to him. I showed up to his high chair with a bowl of very small chopped up pieces of bananas. He was excited, opened his mouth, and planted his face right in the bowl!

We're back from the holidays. DS was spoiled rotten, so we didn't even open half of the gifts that I bought him. We can use them for his birthday or something.

Hope your DS is feeling better Pink_Converse!

[Parrothead]

STTN - DD did it for the 1st time last night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 7pm - 6:30am. She woke around 5am and fussed abit, but went back down on her own.

Fingerfoods - Not yet. Waiting to ask about it at her 9 month appt. next month. For now, we are still sampling various baby foods to expose her to as much as possible.

Crib Mattress - Need to lower it, but haven't yet...on the "to do" list!

[MMHinCA]

STTN: Still not quite there yet, but very close. DD still can't break the 5am waking.

Since starting STing (letting her CIO):

Night 1: CIO 10:40pm to 11:40pm and 2:40am to 3:40am
Night 2: CIO 5am to 5:15am
Night 3: CIO 5am to 6am
Night 4: CIO 5am to 6am
Night 5: CIO 5:45am to 6am
Night 6: Ended up nursing her at 6:30am, then she went back to sleep til 7:45am
Night 7: CIO 5:45am to 6:45am

So she is sleeping from 7:30-7:45pm to 7:30-7:45am with this one waking around 5am. This seems to be a tough one to break!

Fingerfoods: Still not doing them. I am still feeding her. She loves her solids!

Lower crib: I think ours might already be lowered. If I remember right I think we had to lower it to start with in order to put her bumpers on. I should see if we can lower it any more.

I think we may of had our first word this weekend... Dada! My DH heard while I was gone and then I heard it when I got home. I am still working on Mama! :)

We are on our way to DD's follow up doctor's appointment to have her ears checked. I also want to have her weighed again to see if she has gained any weight since she has started eating well again (she stopped eating when she was sick). I also need to cancel her 9 m WBV since we are moving and get copies of her records.

[shortcake]

MMH - When youstarted STing was she still eating in the middle of the night? Did you go cold turkey eliminating that feeding? I am ready to eliminate the last night feeding as I don't think DS needs it, but not sure if I should try to stretch it or simple make him cry through it. He's a stubborn one, though, if I tried to let him CIO I'm sure he'd go longer than an hour or even two!

[MMHinCA]

shortcake - Before we started this STing/CIO she would usually wake anywhere between 3am and 5am. Since we have started this it seems like she will go til 5am and then wake. I am not sure whether she is waking because she is hungry or if it is out of habit. I have heard that this early morning waking can be a hard one to break... I hope she gets the clue soon that she needs to start STTN! :)

We just got back from the doctor... her ears are good! She has also gained 6 oz since last Saturday! She weighed in at 15 lbs 8 oz, which is a little above the 10th %tile. The doctor would like to see her at about the 25th %tile. She said we need to add some fats to her diet (avocado, meats, yogurt).

[Pink_Converse]

Little man is still a little sick but he's doing better and drinking more so that's good. Mama on the other hand only had 1 1/2 hours of sleep and is very sick. I went to the Dr. today and they said it was a bronchial type infection. I got some antibiotics and cough syrup so we'll see how that works out.

Mattress-We lowered it all the way, not that it does us much good since he won't sleep in it ;)!

Finger foods-He finally started doing the pincer grasp thing and he's picking up small bits bread and things like that. He plays with it more than he eats it.

MMH-Glad to hear your sweetie is doing better. H is only 16 1/2 lbs so he's a little peanut too.

[Sneezy]

Look at that--I'm back and it's only been like 10 days. I'm improving!

Bloomwood Thanks for the compliment!--to answer your question, unfortunately it's not all in the past. M has to be checked by a cardiologist every 6-12 months for the rest of her life. She could require more surgery in the near future, not for a while, or never but it's totally up in the air! I hate unknowns!!! *welcome to parenthood, right?* ;)

Sick babies: I'm sorry so many of your kiddos seem to be sick. Marlowe is too. She was tested for RSV on Friday but we don't know the results yet. Pink_Converse, I'm sorry you've got it now, but glad DS is better. My DD goes on hunger strike when sick and it scares us SO much so I totally understand. But--and this is gross--previously a pedi told us that they ingest all the drippy mucous which is why they may still by hydrated (and the wet diapers will prove it) for longer than seems possible. Yuk!

Lowering Mattress: Haven't done it yet.

ST: Haven't done it (but maybe should?)

Small Blanky: We got a bunch from Right Start (http://www.rightstart.com/global/store/product~item~4220~dept~nursery~cat~blankets%2c+pad s+and+pillows.html) and keep one at daycare all the time. DD loves these. (They have slightly plusher ones at Norstrom, too.)
http://images.rightstart.com/global/images/thumbnail/4220.jpg

Finger Foods: We tried some stuff a while back and DD would toss them to the back of her throat, gag, puke, and scare me half to death. So we took a break. Just this weekend we tried cottage cheese and just let her dig in. Sat she puked on it, Sun she did ok. I will keep trying. I wouldn't be in such a rush, but daycare is giving the other babies her age cheerios already and it's freaking me out (not to mention they gave them to her without asking us, but that's another topic).

Hey, have any of you heard of Baby Loves Disco? I know they have it in several states across the US. We went for New Year's Eve (the countdown was at noon) and it was actually really fun and DD seemed to have fun too!

Ok back to work!!! But first--trying again with a picture. I've got it on photobucket now (but how do I make it smaller?????) sorry it's so big--here she is just this weekend at 8mos.
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q1/sneezydeb/IMG_2047.jpg

[karlatta]

I think DS has finally figured out what "da-da" means! He's been saying it for weeks, but never in any sort of context, so we've been trying to teach him that DH is "da-da." This morning we were all playing on the floor in DS's bedroom, and DH left to get something out of another room. As soon as DH rounded the corner, DS pitched himself forward and yelled, "Da-Da!" at the top of his lungs. DH came back around the corner and DS said, "Da-da" and gave him a huge smile.

All day today when he's wanted DH's attention, he's been yelling, "Da-da!" He'll repeat it over and over until DH responds to him.

Of course, when I say "Ma-ma" to him, DS responds with "Da-da," so I think we have a way to go on that one.

[kristin9903]

Congrats on your DS's first word, Karlatta! :) I bet your DH is thrilled.

DS says "da da" all the time, but has no idea what it means yet.

[jennylou]

Since your thread is over 1000 posts, be sure to start a new one soon. :) Thanks!

[MMHinCA]

I'll volunteer to start a new thread. I will let you guys know when it is open. (I hope that is ok :).)

[Katy]

Do you guys need a new user name just to start up a new thread? Why don't you just use the current user name? Just have the threadmistress pass on the sign in info.

[flyerwife]

kyle is a talker and almost a crawler (yikes!) he's babbled mama and dada for a while, but on New Years dad, DH went and picked him up and brought him in to our bed and he turned to me and smiled and said mama. Great way to start the new year.

I've been reading, but not posting, sorry.

Karlatta -- congrats to you! hope everything is going smoothly!

[Standrea]

Hey everyone! Happy New Year! In a few short months, are babies won't be babies anymore-theyll be toddlers :).

Abbie has been sick as well. She woke up with Laryngitis the other day, so we went to the doctor. She has an ear infection! I'm so glad that we went, because i never would have known!!

Crib-That's on this weekends things to do. I went in to check on her last night, and she was playing and reaching up the side...pretty scary!

Teeth-still nothing!

Finger Foods-Abbie has eaten Pirates Booty and Veggie booty when we eat dinner. Also, we had ziti and meatballs lastt night, so we cut up a meatball and let her eat that. I think im ready to let her try avacado on her own, as well as banana's. She loves puffs too, but they are so loaded with sugar, so she only gets them as a special treat!

Does anyone know if pineapple is ok for the kids to eat?

[MMHinCA]

I am waiting for the sign in information for May2006Mommies from Southlooper and then I will start the new thread.

[kristin9903]

Standrea I think pineapple's ok, but it is kind of acidic, so you may want to mix it with something to cut down on that.

Thanks for making the new thread MMHinCa! If the password's the same as it was when I was helping moderate the thread while we were pg, I think I still know it. I'll PM you.

[Scooter]

Standrea, I know citrus foods are highly allergic, so you're supposed to hold off for the first year or so from oranges, strawberries, etc. It seems to me like pineapples would fall in that same category, but I've never read that specifically.

[May2006Mommies]

THE NEW THREAD IS OPENED! :)