MayJune05 Babies - Our Little Ones Are Almost 2!

[cynder]

All the best Ranchers!

Aunt Liv, welcome back and congratulation. I too was wondering how you were doing recently. All the best for a great pregnancy.

Anyone else find their child in a HUGE growth spurt right now? - um YES!!!

[Dreshny]

Welcome back, Aunt Liv, and congrats on #2. How's Maia?

[Jessiesmama]

Wow! Lots going on in here!

Congrats to NJ on the birth of baby North! Very cool name!

Congats AuntLiv! Wishing you an enkoyable and healthy pregnancy!

Ranchers - Best wishes today! I hope everything goes quickly and smoothly for you!

[allyray231]

I hope he has a growth spurt!! All his pants are too big for him!

[Chylynn]

allyray231 -Happy birthday!

[allyray231]

Thanks chylnn!

[DisneyGirl]

rancher Thinking about you today!! Can't wait to hear from you!

aunt liv congrats on #2!

[alienhost]

kim I hope you feel better soon. (ETA: I snuck a peek at your shower pics and you look great, eventhough you say you feel like crap. I love the onesies that you decorated, what a fabulous idea!)

christy1010 and jmvan74 I hope those EIs pass soon

Aunt LivCongratulations and happy/healthy 9 months to you!! and Welcome back!

ally happy birthday!

Anyone else find their child in a HUGE growth spurt right now? The kid is an eating/sleeping machine. It's not right that I just bought him 3T shirts for spring/summer!!!!!!!!!

I think K is going through this too - she has been eating like mad and sleeping a ton. Her 12-18 month pants finally look a little short on her now.

[MayJune05Moms]

Updated:
njnewyearsbride time of birth
allyray ages
added Aunt Liv to RO list

[Aunt Liv]

Thanks everyone!! It's good to be back.

I was looking at the list of RO's, and HOLY COW! You all have been busy popping out some boys!! :D

Growth Spurt - Maia went through one a couple of weeks ago, but she's nowhere near a 3T...she's just now getting comfortable in the 2Ts.

[Chylynn]

Growth spurt -Rebecca fits in 2T pants in the length, but not in the waist. I have to purchase adjustable pants so they don't fall off of her! She is still comfy in 18 months in shirts and shorts.

Grr, I went to office depot to purchase DH a digital photo frame and I was talking to one of the workers about it and asked if I needed to purchase a memory stick (I was pretty sure I needed one) and he said "oh, no..this was has built in memory that will hold 100 pictures." So, I get home, open up the book and first page it says insert memory card. What an asshat! Back to office depot tomorrow since DD is sleepng and DH is out of town this week. Darn, I really wanted to finish it tonight.

[tgray99]

Congrats on #2, Aunt Liv!

Growth Spurt: Aidan's built weird, I think. Her 24 month pants are just starting to fit her right in the length but they barely fit her in the waist. Plus she's long waisted so anytime she bends over it's "Hello baby butt crack!" I'll be glad when she can start wearing capris all the time again...they fit her better.

[psusna]

Growth spurt: We are moving into 2T pants and 3T tops. The tops need to be so big to cover his tummy. He has a long torso -- he's built like his daddy. I tried 3T shorts on him last week and they fell off after he took 3 steps.

Ally: Happy birthday!

[DisneyGirl]

growth Spurt Nikki can still wear 18 month bottoms, however I bought her 2t bottom for the summer becasue I was afraid by the end of the summer the 18 months would be way too small. As far as shirts go I am buying her 2t.

[happy1nuv]

growth spurt ~ Not sure... he's been eating like a pig at some meals, but he totally skips others. He's just recently fit his 18-24 mos clothes ... Ive held off buying anything for summer just because i have NO CLUE what size to buy...

auntliv ~ CONGRATS... h/h 9 mos to you! :)

[Dreshny]

growth spurt: Asher's been eating a lot more, but he still looks little, and he's still pretty comfortably wearing 12-18 months. (I have all this 18-24 month winter stuff that still looks too big on him.) As far as buying ahead, most of what I have for spring/summer so far is 18-24 months (a lot of it was Asher's birthday presents last year.) I don't know what size to buy either--last year I bought 12-18 months for summer, and not only was it gigantic then, but I'm pretty sure it would still fit him now. :eek:

[allyray231]

We are in the same boat with sizes. Onies he is 18-24 months but pants he still fits in 12-18 months in the waist. Only issue is that the length is too short! I even has 18 months pants for him from Childrens Place and they are HUGE. So I am not buying anything for summer yet!

[cynder]

People, I can still fit DS in a few 9-12 month pants! Ok, not really because they are pretty short and tight but I can use them when laundry is low. I stopped looking at sizes because every maker is different. Old Navy and Gap is always right on but Children's Place is always huge. We have the same problem as others with right length but huge waist so now I out a couple of stitches in the waist.

[Sasha]

Rancher - Thinking of you and hoping all is going smoothing with Reece's delivery!

Aunt Liv - Welcome back and congrats!

NJNY - Congrats and welcome North!

Growth spurt - Sarah had been eating like a bird lately and then the past few days she has been wolfing down food. So I think we are in for a growth spurt too. I alway have problems with clothes for her because she is so tall but but lean and long waisted. The kid has constant plumber butt. ;)

We are back from our trip and Sarah had a great time with Grandma. It makes me sad that she only gets to see my mom about 4 times a year and she has such a good time with her. She did so well on the plane, DH and I were relieved, LOL. Of course Elmo DVDs did come in handy. But the big event was the Sarah and DH both got to see snow for the first time! (Course DH has had to wait a lot longer than Sarah for his first snow experience....36 years!). So I have to share pics of my two native Floridians enjoying their first cold as all get out, snow experience. Sarah is so bundled that you can barely see her face!
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r122/SashaM76/snow4.jpg

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r122/SashaM76/snow1.jpg

[IrishEyes]

Brody's been wearing 2T bottoms for a while and we've been buying 3T tops, because he needs the length in the arms and to cover the belly.

From what everyone's been saying so far, waistbands are made too wide for most kids. I found some 2T Cherokee pants at Target that are more slim in the waistband than most, so I'm happy with those.

[DisneyGirl]

sasha Thats so awesome that Sarah and your DH were able to see snow for the first time. I bet they were just so excited..though I bet they could have passes on the cold weather..

[diedra1027]

Growth Spurt - I think so...I hope so :). We're in the same boat as many of you as far as clothes go. Weight wise, Avery is just getting into the 12-18 month size. Height wise, she's at the top of the 18-24 month size. So, almost a 2 size span between her height and her weight! I've mostly been keeping her in 12-18 mo. stuff, since most of it fits comfortably just down on the hips a bit in order to avoid the high-water look. Jeans are the exception. I'm buying summer stuff in 18-24 mo. size.

[allyray231]

ok I think we should all get together and make a clothing line for our tall skinny kids :)

[LIZNKEITH]

Congratulations, Aunt Liv!!

Growth Spurt
She had a pretty big one about a month ago where she gained 2 pounds in a month, BUT, she is still only about 24 pounds and still wears 12-18 month stuff. In fact, the other day she was wearing a 12 month outfit.


Ugh...DD is home today with Pink Eye. She woke up with her eyes all swollen and crusted shut. I'm pretty convinced it is allergies, but the Ped felt otherwise. Oh well, she sees the allergist on Thursday anyway. Poor little love, she looks like she's gone 12 rounds with Mike Tyson.

[happy1nuv]

I've found Kohl's Sonoma jeans to be a bit on the lean side... those are the only jeans that come close to fitting nic right now... I always forget to look for the adjustable waists...

[usafwife]

We just found out last week that we're expecting #2 in October. I'm really excited, although very nervous and scared too. But, I have about 34 weeks to get used to it, I guess.
Aunt Liv ~ Congratulations and happy/healthy 9 months to you!! We were excited but I was very nervous and scared (and a host of other things) as well. It got better as the weeks went on but then at the end it hit me all over again and I felt just like I did when we found out. Things have went much better with DD and DS though so that has helped calm my fears/feelings.

I was looking at the list of RO's, and HOLY COW! You all have been busy popping out some boys!! :D
Yes, it seems that 2007 is the year for boys.

Growth Spurt ~ Yes. We've bought DD some 2T jeans but they are a little long on her and WAY too big at the waist. Thankfully they have an adjustable waist (from Old Navy) so that helps. She still wears her 18 month jeans as well but at 34 inches they are getting a little short for her. She wears mostly 18 to 24 month/2T shirts but for summer I've started buying 3T because she throws a fit when anything tight goes on over her head. They are probably going to be too big but I figure she can wear them longer that way. Right now she's wearing a 24 month dress and she's got plenty of room in it.

Anyone have a child that loves to write on their hands? ~ DD is currently using a pencil to write on a piece of paper and just tried to write on her hand. At least it wasn't a pen (which have all been put up so even I don't have one to use at the desk) this time.

Liz ~ Sorry about the pink eye. I hope Caroline is feeling better soon.


If I see anything in the Feb thread regarding the arrival of ranchers little boy I'll post it here as well.

[Carissa]

aunt liv congrats!!

growth spurt must be because Grace has had a strong appetite the past week. She is only 26 lbs though so we still get her into 18-24 month sizes. He feet grew alot though I had to buy her new shoes this past month.

writing on hands. Grace loves to write on herself, she also loves to write on her baby brother's head. :)

[allyray231]

oh yes we love the writing on the hands. Thank god for washable markers :)

[kimthebride]

Growth
My kid is a monster. He's sooooo freaking heavy! If I wasn't too tired to blink I would have had him weighed last week when we went to the Ped's for his sick visit...he has to have surpassed 30lbs by now. And he's getting pretty darn tall, the 24mo stuff is looking a little short already.

Writing on Hands
Especially with black pens. Good times.

Sasha
Too cute She looks like such a KID.

Did I already say congrats Aunt Liv? :D Congrats!

[Dreshny]

People, I can still fit DS in a few 9-12 month pants!

Asher's still wearing 6-9 month onesies as undershirts. They fit just fine. :o

[ahavnes]

Not much time b/c Abbey is waking up from one of her famous 15-minute naps. :rolleyes: I wanted to pop in and see if there's any news from rancherswife!!

Abbey was so cute yesterday! I had the day off and the weather was great, so we went to 2 different parks. She had fun chasing the birds at the first park, but got mad when they flew off. Poor kid. After her nap we went to another park and she had so much fun chasing her shadow! She kept yelling "bebe, bebe" and chasing it. She did get a little frustrated that she could never catch it. ;)

She has also learned to yell "MAMA" in a very pitiful voice when she doesn't want to nap. :rolleyes: She's been saying "mama" for ages, but just figured out this new manipulation. Fab.

Aunt Liv- Congrats and welcome back! :)

Sasha- Glad Elmo was able to help out on the plane ride. Cute pics!

Growth spurt- Not sure if it's a spurt really, but people keep telling me how much taller she looks. She is already 3 feet tall and not even 2 yet!! Same clothing problems as everyone else. Maybe we should start our own line for tall, skinny toddler?

Writing- On everything!!! We made the choice (mistake??) of getting her some markers that she can use in the tub. Now she thinks everything is fair game. Cabinets, floors, hands...:cool:

[usafwife]

Carissa ~ Thankfully DD hasn't started writing on baby brother with pen yet. Although it could be just around the corner since I found her today trying to write on him with a pencil. If her doll is any indication it's just around the corner though.

ally ~ Oh, no markers! So far DD has only had colored pencils. I've put up all markers for fear I'll have that to try and get off the walls.

kim ~ Black pen is a favorite at our house as well. That's what she used to write all over the doll. I've found it on some books as well. I told her one day she's going to regret doing that.

Alicia ~ That's one of my fears of markers and the main reason why she still hasn't gotten any. I'm still trying to get black ink off my kitchen floor. I can't imagine trying to get marker off.

nj ~ Did I say congrats on North's arrival? If not, please forgive me. Congratulations on his arrival.

Haven't heard anything about ranchers yet.

Gotta go. I hear DD in the other room and it probably means trouble. Plus DS is waking up.

[Aunt Liv]

Sign us up for the tall & skinny toddler line as well. DD is only 23.5 lbs as of last week.

I made the mistake of giving Maia markers one time, and now, that's all she wants to draw with. Even though they're the washable kind, I just don't trust her/them as much as pencils. I had to make the markers disappear the other day.:p

Maia's newest thing is wanting to use a cup without a lid. This means that she's basically spilling water (I won't put anything but a few drops of water in the cup) all over the house! Yep, little puddles everywhere as very little of that water is actually consumed...hmmm...:rolleyes:

OK, Maia is being quiet...need to figure out what she's up to!

[psusna]

Writing on hands: Not so much. We are still eating tons of Crayons here :rolleyes:

Open cup: Same with Jackson. He does fine as long as he's not trying to be silly or show off, which is most of the time.

Alicia: What a great afternoon at the parks! So cute that she is playing the whiney mom card -- ha!

Sasha: Great photos!! Glad that you had good flights and a good trip. Did Sarah like the snow and cold?

Liz: Hope C is doing better with the pink eye. That sounds so miserable.

Anxious to hear from Ranchers!

[cynder]

So DS got bit yesterday on the cheek yesterday when "his friend" (daycare's words) tried to take away his dropped ball. This is the first time this has happened to us. I soooo think I know who it is but DH reminded me that we don't know for sure and that it's not going to do a lot of good to know who it was. The daycare handled it pretty well (incident report, medical care) and were concerned for me this morning since DH did pick last night. DS is fine as pie and even said "Cheese" when we tried taking a photo of it to document. I just hate that this had to happened and I will be mega pissed if it happens again. The kid I think who did it has a history or at least I think he does since he has changed classrooms several times.

Writing We only have the Crayola magic markers where you can only write on the paper and a bunch of magna doodles. He does enough drawing at daycare.

Open cup He is not allowed open sippys but is allowed an inch of water in a special cup. He totally wants it when he sees us drinking something.

[allyray231]

open cup only way Aiden will drink milk. Good thing is though he lets us hold it

cynder so sorry about the bite!

[DisneyGirl]

rancher I hope all is well..we are waiting to hear from you girl!

I am so flippin Happy today WOoT wooT!!!!!!! For the first time in about 8 weeks I am starting to feel human again! NO M/S and I actually was able to get out of bed and do things around the house and play with the kids!! Oh, life is grand! Now I just hope that it lasts because I wasn't sure how much more i could take not being able to get out of bed and all.

[happy1nuv]

no news from ranchers yet, huh?

cynder ~ sucks about the bite, but at least she is taking it in stride..

markers ~ wow, you ldies are brave. Crayons and pencils are about it here... I let him use a pen on occasion (basically whenever he catches me writing out a grocery list) but thats as daring as I get... AND, we have crayons for the bath tub that i've been leery of using... Not gonna crack em open for a while now!

[Sasha]

Writing on hands - She is too busy trying to eat the crayons. :rolleyes: However, I have become a big fan of aquadoodle. We bought a small travel type Sesame Street one for the plane and she loves it. And I don't care if she decides to chew on the aquadoodle pen plus she can't draw on hands, walls, etc., so it's definitely a win-win. ;)

Open cup - At daycare, they give them a small Dixie cup filled with a tiny bit of water or lemonade so they can practice, so she is getting a little better. That said, if she uses an open cup at home, we still deal with drops of water all over the floor.

Disney - Glad you are starting to feel better!

Cynder - Ugh, sorry he got bitten at daycare. I totally know how you feel...it sounds like your daycare handled it pretty well.

psusna - Yes, Sarah loved the cold and she enjoyed walking on the snow. I don't think she was crazy about ice, however. ;)

Who else is stuck in the land of typical toddler food only? Sarah adamently refuses to try anything new. Basically she will only eat things like chicken nuggets, cheese, pasta, fruit, and anything she doesn't know is flatly refused. How many of your kids will eat what you eat for dinner? DH and I had soup and baked potatos with broccoli and cheese for dinner last night, but I couldn't get Sarah to even take a small taste, so she had raviolis with peas and carrots. I am starting to get tired of making two different meals every night.

[allyray231]

sasha we are having some food issues here. I acutally sneak chicken or meat in with some mashed pototaes :)

[rancherswife]

Reece Carter arrived Monday 2/26/07 at 4:03 p.m. weighing 7lbs. and 20 1/2 inches long, we got home last night and are just adjusting to life with two! We're doing great, he's beautiful, looks just like his big brother did at birth and I'll post pics. asap!

[allyray231]

YAY congrats rancher and family and welcome REECE!!

BTW that is my bday-GREAT DAY to be born :)

[Dreshny]

Yay! Welcome, Reece!

[Chylynn]

Yay!!! Congratulations, Rancherswife! Welcome to the world, Reece. :)

[LIZNKEITH]

Congratulations and welcome, Reece! Can't wait to see pictures of the little guy!

[usafwife]

cynder ~ So sorry about the bit.

Disney ~ Yay for feeling better! I hope it doesn't return. I kept waiting for that magical day to happen with DS' pregnancy and it never did happen. :( I thought since the m/s was pretty much gone by 25 wks with DD that would be the same again. That's what I got for thinking.

Sasha ~ I was considering buying one of those aquadoodles for DD. She loves to draw/write on paper (and books as well as other important papers) at least then she wouldn't be writing on anything important (or ruining it). Plus I wouldn't have to worry about her chewing on pencils, writing on hands (legs, arms, feet) or the walls. Sounds like a good thing. It will go on the list of items to get very soon.

ranchers ~ Congratulations on Reece's arrival!! I hope the adjust to two little ones as easy and smooth as possible. Looking forward to seeing pictures.

[Sasha]

Congrats, Rancher and welcome Reece!

[jrdhbunny]

ranchers- Congratulations! Welcome Reece!

cynder- That really stinks! Glad he's ok.

Disney- Glad you're feeling better!

Sasha- Sounds like a nice trip.

Happy belated birthday allyray!

Writing on hands- Nope- my guy likes to draw on his face. Good times. We give him crayons and the Magic Wonder markers and occasionally I'll let him use a pen if I'm sitting with him

Open cup- DS loves to drink out of water bottles and can usually do it without spilling any. We are practicing with open cups but he usually ends up dumping them after a couple sips.

Tall and Skinny- Yup, but he does have a potbelly and his pants tend to fall below that. He's pretty true to size based on age- I've been buying him 24 m and 2T for the summer. He's an 18-24 months in Gymboree and Baby Gap now, but they run fairly big on him so I think he'll still be able to wear that size come summer. The worst part about moving up to 2T is the lack of onesies- he needs them so he'll keep his diaper on (we have a little exhibitionist on our hands).

Potty time- James has gone a few times, but always with our prompting. Well last night we were getting ready for his bath and he pushed me aside so he could sit on his potty and pee in it. :D

Long trip- We're driving to Georgia next week for my sister's wedding. It's pretty informal but I still don't have a thing to wear. In fact, I wish it was formal because then I could wear my MOH dress from a wedding last year that never happened. At least James is covered. I'm a little nervous about the long drive (13 hours which we'll be doing in two days)- we're thinking of buying a portable DVD system for the car but since we rarely go on long trips I'm not sure it's worth the money. Any advice?

[December27JJB]

Welcome Reece!!!!!!!! Congratulations!!!!

[vegasgirl]

jrdhbunny - just thought i would chime in about the portable dvd player for the car - you can get some that are really inexpensive now with car kits. We use ours on our xcountry plane trips as well as long car trips all the time. I am there are parents who would scoff at the use of the DVD player in the car but honestly i couldn't even imagine driving 13 hours without one. We are driving from Vegas to LA next week and that is only 4 hours and we'll be listening to Dora the whole way!! Good Luck!

Congrats Rachers!

[kimthebride]

CONGRATULATIONS RANCHERS!!!!!! WELCOME REECE!!!

I'm a little nervous about the long drive (13 hours which we'll be doing in two days)- we're thinking of buying a portable DVD system for the car but since we rarely go on long trips I'm not sure it's worth the money. Any advice?
Ummm about 3 hours in it will be worth its weight in GOLD. :p Thomas is just not interested in staring at highways these days, so when we do the 4 hour drive to my parents' we pop a Sesame Street DVD or the like into the DVD player in our truck and he won't go nuts. So worth it!

Target has a good selection of them, and the more expensive they are the longer the battery life. You may want to see if any of them come with a car charger - this way you won't need as expensive a player becuase you can just charge it while it plays.

[tgr68]

Fly-by post to say:

Congrats, Ranchers!!! Welcome to the world, Reece!

[DisneyGirl]

congrats Rancher!!!!Welcome to the world Reece

[jmvan74]

Congrats Rancher! Welcome Reece! Can't wait to see the little man.

Sorry about the bite, cynder. Hope it was a one time incident.:(

Sasha: Glad you had a nice trip. Aquadoodles rock! We also have magnadoodle.

I'm so far behind...but hi to everyone else! *waves*

[christy1010]

Congratulations to Ranchers and welcome to the world Reece!

Aunt LivCongratulations and I hope your pregnancy is a happy healthy one.

We too are in the Toddler Food Rut!

Need some suggestions to prevent the temper tantrums when getting in the car after pre-school and heading home for the day! This has happened two days in a row now!

[psusna]

Congratulations Ranchers and welcome little Reece!!

JRDH: We do that drive (GA-PA) 2x/year. There's no way around it -- it SUX!! We take so many toys it's ridiculous. Books, toys, snacks -- take as much as you can. Try to break it up into 3-4 hour chunks if you can because he will get squirmy. We also try to stop at a sit-down place for meals to give us a good rest and something filling and healthy for DS. It's a long drive, but you can do it if you break it down. Good luck :)

Cynder: Oh crap. That stinks. Been there, done that but it sounds like your center handled it very well. I hope that it doesn't happen again.

Christy: Hhmmm...no real advice there. DS is usually so anxious to get home and keep playing that he's fine. He's typically had his fill of the room full of girls by that point and is reay to hit the road. ;)

[happy1nuv]

sasha ~ I actually have the reverse. If I server nic the same thing too often, he won't eat it... He's pretty good about trying whatever I make for dinner, but there are some days that he just won't eat. As long as he's eaten at least one good meal that day, I don't stress it...but, we always end all meals with fruit, an d thats guaranteed to go down! ;)

Congrats Ranchers! Welcome to the world lil Reece!!!

jrdh ~ Can you buy it and leave it in the box til you go? Then, if you need it you have it and if not you can return it? (of course, I'm thinking you'll need it...13 hours...wow! You have my admiration!)

Ok... we're dealing with skin issues again. I'm at my wits end. It started with a yeast infection in the diaper area, then it spread up his butt to where you'd sneak a peak with a plumber. We've been through 2 prescriptions and 1 round of over the counter creams and I thought I had it licked. I think we had all of 2 rash free days... then, sunday we noticed a rash all over nic's belly, thighs, butt ... he spent sat with my parents, so I asked them if he had anything unusual to eat (dad likes to sneak him stuff) and i told them why i was asking, so i would hope they didnt "forget" to mention anything. They said nope - only new thing was a lemon plum (but he's had plums before, not sure what the difference is in a "lemon" plum) ... That rash has gotten better, but now his diaper area is REALLY red and rashy again. WTF!?! I have to wait til 10 to call the ped, but really... It kept waking him up last night so we're both sleep deprived and grouchy! (Its more on the tops of his thighs/butt cheeks...but the part of his butt that was yeast free for the longest) so I dont know if this is part of the rash that was on his tummy or if its ANOTHER yeast infection. Potty training may be in our near future! Oh, the other idea is that it could be a dryer sheet reaction... I did two loads of laundry with them, but i thought it was just dh's stuff (he's being a baby about a bit of static so I relented and bought some) ... I could have slipped in a few of nic's things...
I just hate the not knowing! And not being able to fix! AND... when I'm nice and DON'T wake up dh when Nic is having a HORRIBLE night... I would like a THANK YOU... Not a "You should have woken me" in a very accusing voice... (ok, so thats kind of sweet, but I'm grouchy this morning!) Thanks for letting me vent!!!

[alienhost]

quick driveby to congratulate rancherswife and say Welcome to the world Reece!

BBL to catch up.

[Sasha]

Happy - The dryer sheet idea could definitely be the source. I have pretty sensitive skin and that is one of the things that causes a problem for me....last year, one accidentily ended up in my laundry and I had a terrible reaction....red blotchy spots all over. I'd mention it to your ped. when you talk to them this morning. Poor Nic...hope it clears up soon.

jrdh - Get the DVD player! When we drive to Tampa (4+ hours) or fly to Philly (2.5 hours), it is a lifesaver for us. I don't know how we would do those trips without Elmo, Big Bird and Zoe! ;)

[allyray231]

Happy so sorry! I would def not use the dryer sheets and maybe try soime new diapers

[DisneyGirl]

happy I agree with Allyray..try changing your diapers and maybe even try changing the wipes your using.

[Jessiesmama]

Congratulations Ranchers! Welcome Reese!

DVD Players
Any recommendations on the portable DVD palyers. We're going to Florida and I want to get one for our first plane trip. It will be good to have in the car for long rides too. Any recs?

[cynder]

Welcome Reece and congratulations, Ranchers!!!! I can't believe you are home already.

happy Does the lemon plum have a lot of acid. DS gets bad diaper rash with any juice or when he has a lot of fruits that are acidic. I got the One Step Ahead catalog and they had some kind of super magic diaper spray.

Long Trip I am pretty anti TV but even I think getting a DVD player for long trips is a must. Target and Walmart usually have good deals. I would also pack some new toys, new and favorite CDs in case the new ones backfire and lots of snacks. Also be prepared to stop every 2-3 hours. It's hard for a child to go much longer than that.

Elmo Hell I am in it. After much debate, I take full responsibility for thrusting Elmo on DS. He loves listening to Elmo in the car and it was a boon on our last trip. Well, we decided that we cannot listen to Elmo for the next 10 years in the car so I've been trying different CDs. HA! He throws a fit. Any brilliant ideas besides by mental note to ban Elmo with the next child?

[Mrs.Chappy]

hi, delurking to post..although i'm a june mommy i never post here..not sure why but i totally should.

regarding DvD for the plane...do it!!! we asked my inlaws for one for the holidays. took it on the plane with us last week...DS did not make a peep for the full 2 hrs we were in the air. The man next to me (DS was on my lap) made a nasty comment about DS (said something under his breath like, 'oh great'..well no one knew there was a 20 month old there b/c he was zoned out. My mom was with us and couldn't believe how well it worked. so, she is going to get one for my little nephew (6 months) for when they take trips to see us from the midwest.

ours is a sony and it cost $200. I'm telling you it was worth every cent my inlaws paid!

[diedra1027]

Welcome baby Reece and congratulations Ranchers and family!! Can't wait to see some pictures...

[MayJune05Moms]

updated thread for the arrival of rancherswife's DS Reece!

[wendstress]

Welcome, Reece! Can't wait for the pics!

PSA - Don't, under any circumstance, teach your child the social custom of "Cheers"!! I taught James this about 1 week ago, and now every meal we have to clink glasses about 10 times and say "Cheers." I'll have to ask daycare if he's doing it there, too.

Writing on Body Parts? Ummm...yeah....

http://www.pbase.com/wendym/image/75011018/medium.jpghttp://www.pbase.com/wendym/image/75011019/medium.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/wendym/image/75011022/medium.jpghttp://www.pbase.com/wendym/image/75011024/medium.jpg

[alienhost]

Wow lots to catch up on!

Sasha I'm glad you trip was fun and that DD and DH saw snow! Cute pcitures.

Liz I hope the pink eye is getting better.

ahavnes I'm so jealous you guys were at the park! The whiney voice made me chuckle. Kids are so smart!

cynder I'm sorry your DS got bit, I'm glad he is OK.

Disney yeah for feeling better!

jrdhbunny good luck on your trip!

happy1 ugh, I'm sorry you have having the issues with DS's skin. Are you washing his clothes in hot water? Yeast is very subborn and I think you have to wash stuff (towels too) in hot to kill it or it might spread. Just a thought....but the dryer sheets may def be contributing.

wendstress cute pics! I'm glad to see your little one is still hanging out and not wanting out just yet!

writing instruments she doesn't write on herself but used a ballpoint pen on our duvet cover, I figured she couldn't push the end hard enought to get the pen point out - I was wrong! We've stuck with washable crayon, ball point so far. She is pretty good about staying on the paper/coloring book.

open cup she has gotten very good at drinking with an open cup but I still just put a inch or so of water in it b/c sometimes she dumps it. Or she sets it down on a piece of food and it tips over.

growth spurt I really have to pack away the 12-18 month pants. She can wear a 9 month onesie (like Dreshny's DS) and the other day she had on a 6-12 month t-shirt, although it was tight. I've actually bought her some 2T and 3T short sleeved Ts b/c I figure that way they will last into next fall/winter w/ LS underneath. For summer she probably will be in 18-24 bottoms and 2T tops.

toddler food oh yeah, all about the chix nuggets, fries, cheese, crackers. But she won't eat mac and cheese anymore.

cheers I taught her this a month ago and it comes in spurts, the first few days she was saying cheers and holding up her cup everytime, now it's worn off a bit.

funny/gross story the other day I was in the hall at the washing machine and DD went into our room. She comes out carrying something that is white, I thought used tissue at first (yuck) but she said "mama, sticky" - she had gotten into the bathroom trash and was holding a pantyliner that was rolled up with the sticky-side on the outside. DOUBLE YUCK!

did I miss anything?

[ahavnes]

Congrats Ranchers and welcome Reece! All this talk of new babies almost makes me want to start trying again. Almost. ;)

We are going on two days of no nap here. :mad: I am getting worried b/c she still seems to be in a great mood without one. I really, really hope this doesn’t mean that the nap is on its way out.

Checking from work on the down-low b/c our internet is down at home. BBL.

[kimthebride]

Happy
I am thinking dryer sheets or different diaper....or maybe mom & dad put something on his bum after diaper changes that may be contaminated?? Like maybe (if its possible) from the last YI? Or possibly a different baby wipe when cleaning him off???

[wendstress]

Happy - Funny, I just did a report for work about fungal growth, and factors that affect fungal growth. Although the context was totally different, I can share a little with you and maybe it'll help, since yeast is a type of fungi:

"Fungi grow well in a warm, moist, dark, acidic environment, with exposure to air."

Although human pee should be close to a pH of 7, all the other factors exist. However, as fungi/yeast consume their food source, the waste they excrete is acidic in nature, which I imagine could be irritating to the bum.

So, basics would lead you to: bare butt baby time for drying, frequent diaper changes. Both of which I'm sure you're doing ad nauseum.

Although, perhaps it isn't yeast/fungi, but rather some type of contact dermatitis as others have suggested?? Try just washing him with wet washcloths for a few days, since wipes can be aggrevating to an already aggrevated bum.

I'm sorry for your woes....it has to be so frustrating to you!

[jrdhbunny]

happy- Oh goodness, sorry for all the skin issues!! I don't really have any advice to add; hope you can determine the cause and get it cleared up.

Thanks for all the thoughts on the portable DVD player! I'll definitely be getting one- most likely from Target because we have a gift certificate.

[allyray231]

wendstress great pictures!

[DisneyGirl]

wendstess Awesome Pictures! I laughed so hard when you said that you have to do cheers 10 times at dinner. TOOO cute!!

[wendstress]

wendstess Awesome Pictures! I laughed so hard when you said that you have to do cheers 10 times at dinner. TOOO cute!!

It was very cute. At first. Now, multiple meals and snacks a day... Multiple glass clinkings... It's a little old. Not to mention he won't accept it unless he "Cheers" with everyone at the table. So, 10 cheers for Mommy, and 10 Cheers for Daddy. And then he clinks his own cups together a few times if he's drinking more than 1 thing.

[rancherswife]

Just checking in. I've been trying to upload pics. onto photobucket all afternoon, but it's not workin', I'll try again in a bit. Things are going well here. Landon is taking the "hands on approach" with "Reesh" and it's pretty darn cute. We just have to watch closely. My mom and Brett have been great help with him, but I've been trying to do as much one on one as possible, which is pretty easy to do since all Reece does at this point is eat, sleep and poop. ;) Besides being tired, we're great! I can't wait to show you my new little boy! As soon as I can figure out wth is up with photobucket!

[DisneyGirl]

Rancher How cute that Landon calles his brother Reesh.

[happy1nuv]

ranchers ~ glad things are going well! Can't wait to see photos!

Thanks ladies... I'm gonna go out today to get a pack of Huggies and see if that makes a difference. I've never been specific in what wipes I buy but I always buy fragrance free... And, I think I'm going to be doing A LOT of laundry over the next day or so cause I don't know what was washed with what... but I usually wash everything in cold, so...

wendstress ~ I have to laugh at those pics (and the glass clinking ;)) ... but, what Im laughing at most is that in 10-15 years, he's going to look at those pictures and say ma, you see me writing all over myself with markers and your first thought is to grab the camera??? too cute!

[LIZNKEITH]

Thanks for all the thoughts on the Pink Eye situation. Code Pink has officially been downgraded to Code Clear. :)

Wendy,
LOL at those pictures! James has quite the artistic side. Has he officially chosen body paint as his medium?

tgray,
Wanted to check on you to see how you came through in yesterday's storms. I hope you weren't affected.

[psusna]

Ranchers: Your new avatar is adorable! I'm glad Landon seems to dig Reesh :)

Wendy: The pictures and the Cheers story are great! Hope you are feeling well.

Tgray: Ditto Liz. Are you ok?

Happy: Good luck with the diaper switch. I hope something works soon.

Cough, cough -- DS woke up coughing yesterday morning and again this morning. I THINK it may be a touch of allergy since things are starting to bloom here. He's got clear drainage from his nose and he keeps rubbing his eyes, which were watery today. I hope that is all it is as DH leaves again on Sunday for a week. Does anyone have a recommendation for an OTC remedy?

[kphillips4]

Wendy, those pics are HILARIOUS!!! Haley was drawing with a pen the other day and drew all over her arms and hands. That is soooo funny!!!
Ranchers - I love your new avatar...how sweet is that!!!
Alicia - Whoa, I hope she's not dropping naps all together for your sake!!! How crazy that she's not even tired from not having a nap.

Haley had an eye infection at the beginning of this week but she got on some antibiotic drops and it is all clear now. I think it was the first time we have seen the ped for a cold that we came out with clear ears...I just knew he was going to say she had an EI. SOOOO happy that wasn't the case.

[Sasha]

Rancher - Love your new avatar! Glad Landon is doing well with little brother Reesh. :)

Wendy - Those pictures are so funny!

Alicia - Have you tried sticking her in the car and driving around to get her to nap? I remember you said she used to fall asleep when you drove her home from daycare so maybe that could do the trick?

Happy - I hope the laundry and diaper switch does the trick.

So last night Sarah said "love you" to me for the first time. I got all misty-eyed. Course I don't think she has a clue what it means, LOL, nor will she say it again (or to DH, which has him all riled up ;) ). However, I think she may have just been buttering me up for her 2:30AM wake-up call. :rolleyes: Someone please pass the caffeine.

[allyray231]

sasha oh that is so sweet! I can't get Aiden to say it yet but I try!!

[happy1nuv]

sasha ~ too sweet! definitely worth misting up over

alicia ~ when nic is being stubborn about napping, well take a snooze cruise. A 15 minute circuit usually gets him down, and he usually ends up napping about 2 2hours...of course, he's super grouchy if he doesn't nap - NOWHERE near happy, but...

So.. we went to the ped today to get his rash checked out. It's definitely not yeast anymore...its a combo of a bacterial infection and a skin irritation like excema. He's got two more prescriptions, and we're supposed to use a&d ointment and aquaphor cream (which i've been looking all over for anyway and can't find....ugh, guess ill be doing the drugstore.com thing)... And, if that doesnt do the trick by next Thurs, I'm to call back and she'll refer us to a dermatologist. She said diaper brand probably has nothing to do with it, forgot to ask if she thought it meritted early potty training, definitely agreed that i should wash all towels/onesies in at LEAST warm water (hot is better), and absolutely nothing with fragrance or dye as far as detergent/cleaners. i forgot to ask about baking soda in bath water... but i think im going to stop that because i think its been bothering ME, and if it bothers me, its gotta be a contributing factor... So, hopefully this will be my last post about this stuff til I share a happy all clear post! :)

[ahavnes]

Ok, so we tried the "snooze cruise" (love the term happy1) yesterday on the way home from school. She slept in the car for about 30 mins. and woke up still sleepy. When I tried for the transfer, she refused again!!! :mad: That is 3 days with virtually no nap! I have to take her to the ped today for an ear check, so I'll ask about it then.

Sasha- Too cute! I am jealous. ;)

rancherswife- I am loving the avatar. That is just about the sweetest thing ever!

Wendy- Cute pics!

[LIZNKEITH]

Kimberly,
Ugh...Haley, too? I'm really thinking these eye infections are more allergy related than anything. Caroline had it this week, too.

Sasha,
How sweet! Caroline has only said it to me once and I've been trying to pry it out of her since. Sweet words made sweeter by their little voices.

Happy,
Have you tried Wal Mart? We got a big tub of Aquaphor from there. It wasn't back by the Pharmacy where you would think it would be, but over by the cosmetics. Hope you are able to find it. If you need someone to mail you some, I'll be happy to. ETA- is aquaphor cream different than regular aquaphor?

[alienhost]

ahavnes sorry about the napping woes, I hope it gets better soon.

rancherswife your avatar is so sweet and I love how L calls him Reesh, so adorable!

psusna I hope the cough doesn't turn into anything more. and I hope the time with your DH away goes quickly for you.

kohillips4 ugg, sorry about the eye infection but that's great that it has cleared up.

sasha that is so sweet!

happy1 I have found the Aquaphor ointment at CVS in both the baby aisle with the diaper creams and in the regular adult lotion aisle with the Eucerin stuff. Costco has it too (at the pharmacy). I hope it clears up soon, but that's good you know the issue. There was an eczema thread in 0-12 months I think. DD has it too but thankfully it has gotten better as she has gotten older.

[allyray231]

speaking of skin issues-Aidens skin is really dry. Anyone have suggestions? Should I use the Eucerin lotin on him? I have some

[wendstress]

Ally - I LOVE Cetaphil! Absolutely LOVE it. My ped's office gave me a sample last winterfor James' chapped cheeks and it worked very well. Then I started using it for my chronically dry winter hands.... Up until then, I had never had a lotion that actually worked on my nasty, dry hands. Cetaphil does. I get the stuff in the tub (it's nice and thick), but it does come in a bottle, too.

I've never tried Eucerin, so I can't compare!

[jmvan74]

Uggh! So far behind.

Wendy: LOL! Those pics are great!

Rancher: Can't wait to see "Reesh";)

Alien: Gross....but so funny! LOL!

kphillips4: sorry about the eye infection...

Ally: we've used Eucerine on Collin, but prefer Aveeno (regular stuff) or cetaphil.

Happy: Hope the new meds clear up the rash. Poor kid.

Things here are crazy. 2 under 2 is not as bad as I expected, but still overwhelming at times. No time for me, but that will come w/ time. Gotta go...Brady is waking up.

[kimthebride]

speaking of skin issues-Aidens skin is really dry. Anyone have suggestions? Should I use the Eucerin lotin on him? I have some
As you know,T has super-sensitive skin so my Ped suggests using:
- Eucerine Original (in the pump) Lotion daily
- Eucerine Cream (in the jar) when extra dry
- Aquaphor when REALLY dry, just no polyester clothing against hisskin with this or you can cause a heat rash due to lack of skin breathing

All these work great! I use the Eucerine Cream too and love it.

--

We're headed to FL for a week tomorrow, so wish me luck that Thomas naps, sleeps well, behaves and performs all other miracles. I need to rest before #2 arrives in about 6 weeks!! Have a good week,ladies. :)

[Aunt Liv]

CONGRATULATIONS RANCHERSWIFE, AND WELCOME REECE!!

We've had a difficult week this week. We were in the hospital the past couple of days with the croup. Although the croup isn't a huge deal (although it sounds horrible), Maia was actually having trouble breathing (they called it stridor (sp??) breathing), which is actually why we were
admitted. We went to the pediatrician on Wednesday (for the 2nd time...we had gone on Tuesday already), and as soon as we walked in, the pediatrician said we needed to go to the hospital (that was SUPER scary...I never thought I would see a doctor kinda freak out like that). They gave her a breathing treatment at the pediatrician, then sent us to the hospital, where
she had 4 more treatments in 8 hours (so every other hour). When the stridor breathing was still occuring, they decided to admit us.

So, long story short, it's been a long 48 hours, but we are finally HOME!!! Maia is back to her normal self, except that she hasn't eaten in 48 hours - can't blame her with that hospital food, but she's still resisting the food now. BAH! She is still super tired, and I think is looking forward to some uninterrupted sleep in her own bed.

OK, she's taking over the mouse, so I must go!

[alienhost]

Aunt Liv wow, scary experience for you, I'm glad Maia is home and hopefullly on the road to feeling better.

kim enjoy your R&R trip. Fly safe and try to relax if you can.

happy1 and kim thanks for stopping by my ES thread...it was nice to see you guys there and you both made me feel better.

dry skin I use Aquaphor ointment after her bath and during the day on really dry patches. I also have a tube of Aveeno Baby something. kim interesting about the polyester, I didn't know that, although DD is usually in cotton. good to know!

[happy1nuv]

auntliv~ Ouch. Glad Maia's home and feeling better...scary though!

Kim ~ Have fun in FL! Hope Thomas is a total angel - at least most of the time! :)

Aquaphor ~ is there a different baby aquaphor than regular adult aquaphor, or is it all the same stuff? I stopped at walmart to fill Nic's prescriptions and while looking for lotion for me found the adult stuff, so I bought a tube of that... we'll see (thanks Kim for the blurb about natural fibers...NEVER would have guessed that, and since it goes all the way down his thighs I'll be sure to check on what he's wearing to be safe) ...

[diedra1027]

Aquaphor ~ is there a different baby aquaphor than regular adult aquaphor, or is it all the same stuff? No, just the regular kind. When Avery is having trouble with dry skin I like to mix the aquaphor with Eucerin and apply after bath. Cuts down on the greasy factor :).

Aunt Liv - How scary!! Glad you guys are back home and the Maia is doing well.

[jmvan74]

Have fun Kim!

How scary, Aunt Liv!:( I'm glad Maia is doing better. Oh, and Congrats to you! I think I missed that somehow. H&H 9 months to you.

[rancherswife]

Just checking in...I'm still uploading pics., I've had time (believe it or not) but damn photobucket hasn't been cooperating very well. I'm going to give it a go in a few minutes.

kim: Enjoy your vacation!!! Hope Thomas does OK for you, I'm sure he will...he's a good boy! :)

Thank you everyone, for your compliments on the avatar, that's just a little "taste" of what my sweet boy looks like...I promise to have more by the end of the weekend. I did post my crazy birth story in the Feb. 07 thread for anyone interested. It's quite encouraging for RO's still waiting to deliver, or those thinking of becoming RO's :). Oh, and one piece of advice for kim girl...I highly suggest you keep your butt at the hospital from about 38 weeks on...I didn't have a fast delivery with Landon, and the second...wow! You could EASILY deliver in the car with #2, my friend! ;)

[rancherswife]

Ok...here are a few of the big day!

Mommy and Daddy checking Reece out:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k15/rancherswife/100_0196.jpg?t=1172955101

Getting cleaned up:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k15/rancherswife/100_0188-1.jpg?t=1172957221

The first family photo:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k15/rancherswife/100_0216.jpg?t=1172957882

BBL with more....

[jmvan74]

Rancher: Great pics! You look fantastic! At 6 weeks post-partum I still look like a zombie. :p

[Aunt Liv]

Rancher - what a gorgeous family!! Congratulations again! I'm going over to the Feb. thread to read your story. ;)

[rancherswife]

Thank you!

Here are just a couple more....(I could keep going forever, but I'll spare you. ;))

http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k15/rancherswife/100_1328.jpg?t=1172970697

http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k15/rancherswife/100_0231.jpg?t=1172970521

[kelseyledare]

Congratulations, Ranchers, on your beautiful little boy, Reece! What a cute pair of brothers they make! I also love his name BTW.

[DisneyGirl]

Aunt liv WOW, how scary about your DD having to go to the hospital. I am so glad to hear she is home and getting better each and every day.

Rancher You look freakin AWESOME!! You have a good looking family BTW!

[psusna]

Aunt Liv: I'm so glad that Maia is doing better and home from the hospital. I hope she feels great this week.

Ranchers: Thank you so much for sharing your photos. Your family is so beautiful and you look like giving birth is no sweat! I was sorry to read about your epi experience. Same thing happened to me both at 7cm and during pushing! No fun.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend.

[allyray231]

Aunt Liv so sorry! Glad Mia is doing better

rancher what cute little boys! And you look AMAZING!

[happy1nuv]

rancher ~ What awesome photos! You look wonderful, and reece is adorable... you have a gorgeous family!

[usafwife]

kim ~ Enjoy your trip!

ranchers ~ Wonderful pictures!! And the avatar is too cute.

Aunt Liv ~ Sorry to hear about Mia. I'm glad she's doing better.

[Dreshny]

rancherswife: I love all the pictures! Enjoy your boys. :)

[Sasha]

Rancher - You have two beautiful little boys, love all the pictures. And you look pretty amazing too! I read your birth story, talk about fast and furious!

Aunt Liv - How scary for you and Maia. Glad all is ok now.

Big news here....Sarah pooped in the potty this weekend!! It was a total fluke, LOL. Because we have a two story house, I bought her an Elmo potty ring for the downstairs bathroom. Well since it was Elmo, she was totally obsessed with it and and had to sit on it. She had been on there for about 5 minutes just reading and talking to the Elmos, and I honestly wasn't even paying close attention at this point, when all of a sudden she let out a little cry and then I heard a "plop!" I started laughing and cheering and she looked at me like I was kind of crazy, LOL. DH came running and we were hugging her and hi-fiving her, and she got all excited with us, but I know it was just a coincidence that she happened to be on the potty when it happened. Still, we were excited (geez, motherhood makes you get excited over things you would never imagine :p ).

[ahavnes]

After all of our previous successes, Abbey now refuses to sit on her potty. :rolleyes: Oh well, I take each day in stride with this strong-willed little baby of mine. ;)

But the exciting thing is that her vocabulary is totally exploding. She seriously adds like 3-4 words a day. For some reason she really likes to point and say “butt!” Not sure where she got that from, since Scott and I say “bootie,” but oh well. LOL!

I think this thread is actually really good for me b/c I am starting to get a little bit of the baby bug b/c of all the RO’s in here. Well, maybe not the bug, but I am at least not dreading TTC #2 this summer. ;)


Lotion-We just use J&J Baby Lotion (the old school pink kind). I put it on Abbey’s face every morning and at night after her bath. They use Cetaphil at school though. Her teacher said the kind in the tube has a little alcohol, whereas the tub doesn’t (FWIW).

Sasha-LOL, Abbey looks at us like we are crazy too when we get excited about the potty. I think all of our screaming scares her a little bit. ;)

rancherswife-You look amazing! Please post your birth story over here so we can all see what happened. I am curious. Beautiful kids by the way. Congrats again!

Aunt Liv-Glad Maia is back home. My mom said I had Strider when I was a newborn and it scared the daylights out of her. Definitely not the stress you need with a bun in the oven!

[Jessiesmama]

Ranchers
You look amazing! Congrats on your baby boy Reese! Beautiful Family!

New Sleep Problems
DD is sick with a cold and is now up at 1:00am screaming. We've been bringing her in our bed at that time but she is all over the place and has to sleep on top of me till she falls asleep! Then she's tossing and turning.... I've been up all night for several nights. A few weeks back (when she was healthy for a week :rolleyes: ) we tried to CIO - she cried for 2 straight hours. I'm out of my mind - does anyone have any advice?

LJ
I'm just restarting my LJ Journal. My name is jessiesmama

[rancherswife]

alicia: here you go...

Birth Story:

We arrived at the hospital (late) at 7:15 a.m. on Monday morning. My OB was waiting there for us. Waited for the nurse to get me all ready, changed, pee in a cup, etc. then he broke my water around 8:15 a.m., I was still a 2 and about 80% effaced at that time. Said he'd wait to see if I started contracting on my own, before we started the pitocin drip. Around 11 I was having mild contractions, about every 2-3 mins. nothing too bad. So, the nurse called my OB at noon and told him, he said start the pit. and he'd be in a little later. Got the pit. going around 12:30, she asked if I wanted the epi. I told her not yet, she said the epi. dr. would be in a c-section until around 2, so I should get it if I wanted. I declined, wasnt' in enough pain yet. By 1:15, I wished I would've gotten it before he went in for the c. But was still able to talk, etc., nurse didn't up the pit. drip until after I got the epi. at 2:30, at that time I was still a 3 and almost completely effaced. My OB came in and checked on me and went back to his office. Epi. was working fabulously and I was just chit chatting with my mom, Brett and my cousin when all of a sudden I could feel every contraction, this was at 3:55, nurse came in, I was 4, she called the anesth. for him to re-up my epi., a couple mins. later I felt the urge to push, she checked me, I was 6, 1 min. later, I was 10 at 6 she called my OB who's office is just down the road, a couple of stop lights away. She started getting frantic, as did I, since I could feel everything and that was NOT my plan. I told her I HAD to push and she said go ahead, one push, his head was out and not even a full push again,and my beautiful boy was born! It was CRAZY fast. My OB came in as they were cleaning him under the warmer and could not believe it, he left his office as soon as they called and told him I was at a 6. It was a great delivery and I wouldn't change anything, except the part where the epi. wore off and the anesth. didn't have time to do anything before I delivered. As a matter of fact, he was actually standing there watching me deliver. The nurse who delivered Reece was amazing! I had to laugh, after all of my wishes for not going into labor before my induction so my dr. could deliver and then it ends up like this! We laughed and I told him I'd catch him on the 3rd! They were cracking up that I said anything about a 3rd baby just minutes after delivery!

[cynder]

Rancherswife You need to tell me your secret for looking so glam after delivering a baby. You and your family are just plain gorgeous. What a great delivery.

[rancherswife]

cynder: lol, you're all too sweet...it's called an induction, you know you're going in, you've had baby #1 and have seen how swollen and hellashis you looked in those pics. so you'll do anything you can to look a teeny tiny bit better for baby #2's birth pics.! ;) Thank you...It wasn't a whole lot of work, when you only push about 1 and half times!

[cynder]

rancherswife Yeah, I think I would need to work on the "pushing 1 and half times" for looking good after baby #2.

Sasha I was cleaning out a bookmark file and thought of your issues with Sarah and thought I would post this here:
http://moxie.blogs.com/askmoxie/2006/11/qa_20montholds_.html

[allyray231]

rancher wow!!

[tgr68]

We had a pretty busy weekend. DH, DD, and I went to KC to spend the weekend with his aunt and so DH could attend some insurance training. We took DD to Chuck E. Cheese for the first time as well! It was a blast!

Growth Spurt~DD has been eating everything in site the last few days, so I imagine a spurt is on its way soon! On Sunday, she ate 3 slices of pizza - the same as DH and I! :eek:

Ranchers~I love your new avatar - so sweet! Reece is beautiful, and (like others have pointed out) you look fantastic! :D What a wild birth story. MIL said that DH was born in a very similar manner - dr walked in shortly after the nurse made the catch! ;)

Happy~Yuck! I hope things clear up soon!

Ally~I wouldn't see why you couldn't use the Eucerine on him.

Aunt Liv~Scary about the breathing. Glad Maia is feeling much better!

DD has been amazing me with all of her singing lately. She loves to sing "ABCs" and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".
ABC (as sung by DD)
Baby C
QRSTUV.....YZ
Now I know Baby Cs

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (as sung by DD)
Twinkle stars
How I what you are
Up above world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle star
How I what you are

[Aunt Liv]

tgr68 - I love your DD's rendition of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." That song and the ABC song happen to be Maia's favorites as well...and it definitely helps that they are sung to the same tune. ;) Maia likes to mix up the two songs, so her rendition is more like:

"A,B,C,D,E,F,G [although the letters are usually not so much in order] /
[incomprehensible] how you are"
etc. :D

I really need to get it on tape.

[christy1010]

I am so far behind, I will do my best with SO.

RanchersReece is so precious. You look great! Your family is just beautiful! Congratulations!!!

Aunt Liv Sound like the illness with Mia was so scarry! Glad to hear she is feeling better!

tgr68 How sweet that DD sings!

Growth Spurt I am fairly certian that she had one before the EI because Sarah was eating me out of house and home for a week.

Kim Hope your trip is great!

Sasha Yeah for Sarah pooping in the potty!

Well, Sarah is sick again! She finished her medication for the EI on Saturday and started getting stuffy last night, has a runny nose and is running a very low grade fever tonight! Does it ever end with the illness? I may be in for another few nights of lack of sleep!

[DisneyGirl]

tgr I love the words in your DD songs. So freakin cute!

[psusna]

Songs: SO CUTE!! DS does the ABC thing but loves Wheels on the Bus. It's basically (with all hand motions)

Wheels bus round round
Horn bus beep beep
Driver bus move
Babies bus wah wah wah wah wah
People bus down down down

New favorite phrase "Come on mommy!" -- This is used when we aren't coming fast enough to play with him.

Typical morning conversation on the way to school
DS: BUS!
Me: Who rides the bus?
DS: Big Kids!
Me: Where are they going on the bus?
DS: School
Me: What do they do at school?
DS: FUN!

He cracks me up.

[alienhost]

rancherswife thanks for sharing your pics/birthstory. Wow you look amazing and your family is gorgeous. I wish I looked 1/2 that good when I had DD!

jessiesmama sorry about the sleep issues, no real suggestions here but I feel for you

christy ugg, sorry to hear DD is sick again.

Sasha yeah for pooping in the potty!

word explosion we have that here, she more or less says anything we say. The other day I dropped her book and she said "oh shoot". I've been saying "shoot" instead of the other bad word. Thank goodness! Her new phrase is "are you okay?" Someone said it to her on Sat when she tripped and fell and now she says it when she falls. When we go out or are getting ready to eat she says, "I'm ready mama!" its so funny to listen to her little voice say these things.

songs too cute guys! DD loves singing "happy birthday" now. And the ABCs.

[happy1nuv]

Ok... I know Nic will talk when he's ready, and I'm really not worried about it...once he starts, I'm sure I'll look back to his not talking fondly...BUT, hearing all these cute baby conversations/singing... (sigh)

sasha ~ yay for pooping on the potty!

ranchers ~ great birth story!

[Sasha]

I told Sarah's daycare teacher about the pooping in the potty so she decided to have Sarah sit on the potty and she peed on it yesterday. I was kind of sad that I didn't get to be there for the first potty pee, but I got the first poop, right? ;) :o

Songs - I've got a singer here too. ABC's, Twinkle Twinkle, Bah Bah Black Sheep, and her latest is the Elmo's World theme song (which leads me to believe that she may have watched it too much on the recent plane rides!) Her version goes....

La la la
Elmo's wor
la la la
Elmo's wor
Elmo wuvs go-ish
Cay-on too
Dat Elmo's wor!

Word explosion - I can't even keep up anymore! This morning she bumped into me and said "cuse me!" That surprised me!

Alicia - Seeing all the new babies and ROs around here is making me a bit more excited to start TTC #2 too.

Christy - Sorry Sarah is sick yet again.

[kphillips4]

AuntLiv- Glad that Maia is alright and is back home. That must have been extremely scary.
Ranchers- You look great and your family is so cute!! Great pics! What an amazing birth story!! Sounds perfect!
Sasha - How exciting!!! I think it's so funny that we get so excited and our children look at us like we are nutso!!! That is great!!!
Alicia - I hear ya on the new words. It seems that Haley picks up on everything and it is amazing how many words she is saying out of the blue. I think it's so funny.
Tgr - I love the words to your Baby C song!!! That is hilarious!
Psusa - Haley loves the wheels on the bus song as well. She loves doing the hand movements and cheers extremely loud for herself when she finishes the song!! She is also saying Come on Mommy however, hers is more like " mon mommy".

[ahavnes]

Ok, Abbey is not singing at all. :o She sure loves music though! DH taught her to pretend that she is wailing on an air guitar and she loves it. That and the cursed Dora CD in my car. If I hear "Celebrate Good Times" again I am going to scream!!!

rancherswife- Thanks for the story! Gives me hope for next time. Maybe I can avoid the 17-hour labor I had with Abs and look half way decent. ;)

christy- Sorry Sarah is sick! Spring is right around the corner. :)

[happy1nuv]

singing ~ Nic isn't really verbal yet, but there are a few songs we do with hand motions... he does the motions ALL the time and gets so excited when you sing the words he picks out! ;)

[Aunt Liv]

Sasha - WOW!! I'm extremely impressed that Sarah pooped and peed on the potty!!! Maia will sit on it for like 2 seconds, but that's it...she'd rather put her toys in there...:rolleyes:

songs - "Old McDonald" is another favorite of Maia's. I'll sing "Old McDonald had a farm" then Maia goes "ee-i-ee-i-oh" then we go through the animals and she makes the animal sounds.

dancing - another one of Maia's favorite hobbies. Her favorite CD right now is the Red Hot Chili Peppers "Californication." She gets really upset when each song ends. I refuse to buy her any kids CD's just because I know she's never let me listen to anything else-HA! ;)

[Traciann]

happy- i hear ya! as i was reading along...i was suprised to hear that other kids are singing! we just working on the words over here! i will say in the last 3 weeks we have heard a bunch of new words. wahoo!

[tgr68]

dancing - another one of Maia's favorite hobbies. Her favorite CD right now is the Red Hot Chili Peppers "Californication." She gets really upset when each song ends. I refuse to buy her any kids CD's just because I know she's never let me listen to anything else-HA! ;) LOL! DD demands "White & Nerdy" by Weird Al. :rolleyes:

[happy1nuv]

I will say Nic is being more conversational lately... it's just that he babbles and we speak english. He DID sign correctly last night...I was ECSTATIC. Before yesterday, he would mimic the signs back to you or if you said can you sign whatever, he could... but last night he actually OUT OF THE BLUE signed more, pointed to his chicpeas, and then signed please. NO prompting... i wasn't even really signing at ALL with him yesterday (lazy day)... I was totally caught off guard and made a total big deal out of it :)

[LIZNKEITH]

Ranchers,
He's beautiful!! I can't get over how much Reece and Landon look alike. And you, my dear, look fab after just having a baby!

Songs
I'm having so much fun reading along. Your kids are hilarious! We haven't really gotten to songs yet, she'll mumble along incoherantly to the tune of "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Little Einsteins Theme", and "Hot Dog" though.

[psusna]

Happy: That's awesome!!! Way to go Nic!! He's such a polite little guy signing please :)

[Sasha]

Cynder - For whatever reason, it struck me last night that I had never responded to your post with the link to the article on eating. I wanted to thank you for posting it. Luckily, I think we are better off that the struggles in that article. Sarah has a great appetite, the problem is she won't try anything new. So, I'm not concerned at all about her weight gain but rather expanding her past chicken nuggets, pasta, cheese, fruit and yogurt, aka, all they typical toddler stuff. I read about all these kids who are eating what their parents eat for dinner and I'm thinking, what did they do that I didn't to get their kids to eat that stuff? :o

Happy - Yay for Nic signing on his own!

[cynder]

Sasha - I think we have the same problem as you and really it's a normal although frustrating phase. Right now DS is an eating machine b/c I suspect he is finally going through a growth spurt. So I know that is eating enough but veggies are still a struggle and he is still being "selective" in what he eats. It also frustrates me when he won't eat things he loved in the past.

As a FT WOHM, it is hard but what we have been trying to do it at least once a week is to eat as a family and offer what we are eating and nothing else. It's hit or miss but because he sees us, he wants it. He even though he refuses it every time, I still heat up a few tablespoons of veggies (frozen). Every once in a while he'll eat a piece. I sneak veggies in alot of stuff and sometimes he is on to me.

Honestly, I think it's possible to get kids to eat what parents are eating but it has to be from the start or you have to make a strong and consistent stand to change. Consistency is my problem. I am always concerned about DS's height and weight so I always cave into the mac and cheese syndrome.

Words We're getting a few sentences here and it's freaking me out. DS was pretty much wordless until recently so this sudden surge is kind of like having the dog all of sudden talk!

Happy Woohoo. What a great sign for Nic!

Song Not into singing but really into dancing and action songs like "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" and he does the cutest "hokey pokey". He also likes to make the "wubba, wubba" sound in the Cure's "Love Song". :)

[happy1nuv]

Hmmm... well, I have an easier time getting Nic to eat veggies than I do DH... but lately I've started making veggie "pestos" ...spinach and broccoli are really good ones. Basically you just cook veggies, then blenderize (sorry, cant remember the right word for it) with a lil oil, garlic, parmesan cheese, and salt... (ill throw a few nuts in too for the good fats) ... put on top of pasta, and its even fooled dh! (you can search online for recipes for the individual veggie but thats the gist of it)

[tgr68]

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star (http://www.dropshots.com/videolink.php?userid=32398&cdate=20070307&ctime=104704&showVideo=1)
Of course since the camera was on, she didn't do it as well as she normally does. :rolleyes:

[rancherswife]

just checking in....things are going well here. i'm reading along, but i'm just not a good one-handed typer! ;)

[Aunt Liv]

happy1 - I'm totally impressed with Nic signing! That's awesome. And thank you so much for the pesto suggestion...I need to figure out how to get some veggies into Maia. Like most of the other toddlers, she loves her chicken nuggets, yogurt, apple sauce, and fruit, but she doesn't vary much from this menu. :rolleyes:

eating as a family - only happens on w/e for us. DH gets home way too late from work during the week for us to be able to eat as a family.

Anyone else's child starting to show signs of the terrible twos??? Maia is driving me up the wall with her attitude lately. She can be a complete angel one second, then throwing herself on the ground with a temper tantrum the next. And I'm SO tired right now that I just don't have the energy to discipline her like I should...I'm worried I'm raising a spoiled brat over here. (Bad Mommy!!)

[psusna]

tgr: Oh what a doll!! She is just adorable, and quite the singer :)

Liv: Yes. It's happening here too. I've noticed it a LOT this week and thought it was just b/c DH is traveling for work, but I really don't think that is it. I think it's the dreaded twos :(

Ranchers: Hi!!

[alienhost]

happy1 that's great the N is starting to sign. DD signs and I think it helped SOO much with her before she was verbal. I love the "please" sign, it is so cute and when she really wants something she signs and says please. Too funny.

tgr cute video!

Anyone else's child starting to show signs of the terrible twos??? Maia is driving me up the wall with her attitude lately. She can be a complete angel one second, then throwing herself on the ground with a temper tantrum the next.

I could have written this! Just in the past 2 weeks she has gone from a sweet child to Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. The throwing herself on the ground is awful. She also never really throws toys, until now, if she gets frustrated she will take her arm and sweep they toys she is using on the floor or throw them down. I wish I knew how to handle it better.

eating as a family I eat br and lunch with her but dinner is tough, DH gets home right around when she is in the middle of dinner and I have a hard time coordinating getting the food on the table for all of us with her running around. Generally we eat after she goes to bed, which I know isn't ideal.

[Dreshny]

Eating as a family: We do, almost every night around 7:30/8:00 when DH gets home. But then, Asher goes to bed really late (last night was awful, BTW. 12:45, anyone? He got way excited about peeing in the potty, and proceeded to sing and dance for two hours afterward. :rolleyes: ) When he was younger and passed out earlier, it often wasn't an option.

[allyray231]

the 2s OH YES. We are into screaming REALLY LOUD when we don't get out way

dinner as a family we do and have always tried to do this. Now that we are living with my parents, we all sit down to dinner which is nice. No TV on during dinner either, my rule :).

food-Aiden is hit or miss with food lately. Used to love pizza, now hates it. I mixed mashed potatoes with brocolli the other night and he ate it ALL UP. I snuck some chicken in there too. He seems to eat a lot better when I let him use his own fork and put his food on his Thomas plate :) It is like a game, eat the food and find Thomas!

[kimthebride]

I am really cranky today, so you all may want to skip this post. :rolleyes:

Terrible Two's: A Preview
WTF was I thinking of having kid #2 right before kid #1's second bday? Must get self tested for drugs.
He's starting to test boundaries, and I have zero energy for it. It better stop soon, because I hear there is a good market for cute blonde kids on ebay ;) . He's not a nightmare or anything, but I'm so tired even the 2-minute fit after I say "no" to something like "no, please don't break you neck doing that". "no, please don't throw food at my head" or "no, please don't run into traffic" is a bit much for me right now! You'd think I was being mean, not trying to keep him safe.

Dinner Together
Not really. T eats around 5:30-6 and I try to eat with him (though I still have m/s now at that time), but DH doesn't get home until after that and usually doesn't eat dinner until after 8pm. It stinks!
I hope when we have a house and a dinner table and things are more settled we can have a better family meal. I grew up with everyone being home and at the table for dinner, asking to be excused, helping mom clean up etc and would like that formality in my own fmaily.

Food
He's still a pretty good eater. Though we're still on vacation in FL and most meals he won't eat anything but pancakes or fries. Really healthy.

Talking/Singing
happy1 you're not alone. T still doesn't talk much. He "talks" but its Klingon or something. Lots of telling me stories or what to do, and I just try to interpret.
From what I have learned, as long as he understand what I am saying its not a worry that he's not saying much. And he does. I can tell him "pick this up" "which do you want" "your toy is by the such and such" "give me a kiss" and he knows exactly what I'm saying. He just is a man of action, rather than words!

Dancing
He has happy feet. Its not really dancing to music per say, but he'll run around with what we call "crazy legs" (deliberately running funny so he's wobbly and goes zig-zagging), and he also hops and will stand in place and hop from one foot to another really fast laughing when he's exited. Its pretty cute.


Sorry no shout-outs...I'm trying to keep up but not logging on much this week....

[jmvan74]

terrible 2s: I need a word worse than terrible!!:eek:

dinner together: Half the time we eat together, but some days Collin wants to eat earlier, so I oblige. :)

[wendstress]

Terrible 2's. Ditto to what Kim said - Why am I having #2 right now??? WTF was I thinking.

Two nights ago James through a fit when I wanted to take of his jacket. Fine. Leave it on. So he took it off himself and put it on the couch. Another tantrum ensued when I tried to put it away. He pulled it out of my hands and put it back on the couch.

Many other stories like that. Last night he was mad when I wouldn't let him open the dishwasher (dishes were dirty). I ignore what I can, and re-direct (Legos and videos are a Godsend!!!) when he wants to do something not allowable.

[rancherswife]

terrible 2's are in full swing in this casa!!! perfect timing. ;)

[cynder]

eating as a family Once in a blue moon. DS has to eat at 6:00 and totally whines if there is any delay. Whoever does pick up is usually comes home after this so DH and I end up eating afterwards. I'm hoping with the time change, summer hours and some coordination from DH that we can make happen more often.

tantrum You guys are scaring me. We're in a real sweet spot of good behavior after a lot of bad. I feel like I've paid my dues so please no terrible two especially now that I am trying to figure out how to logistically have #2. Ok, I know how to have #2 but I am trying to figure out how I can stay home from work, reconfigure our house, our savings, etc. Terrible 2's might dissuade me.

[Dreshny]

Tantrums: Yeah, the tantrum talk is scaring me, too. Please, tantrums, stay away! I spend every day completely exhausted and sleep-deprived, but least I have a cheerful little night owl. ;)

[ahavnes]

Terrible 2's- Puh-lease. We have been having fits at this house since she was born! :p I have one spirited little Irish baby on my hands! I usually try to distract, but the kid has a total one-track mind. She doesn't really throw things or hit when she is mad, but man can she turn on the water-works! DH and I think she has a real future in acting. ;)

Dinner Together- We have always tried to do it, but lately it's not working so well. DH doesn't get home until about 6:15 and we eat around 7. But lately Abs has been getting hungry earlier, so she basically eats 2 dinners. She'll have a healthy snack at 6 and then some bites of whatever we are eating at 7. This doesn't work so well though b/c she gets sick of being at the table while DH and I are eating (b/c she's basically already eaten) and screams her head off. :rolleyes: Eating after Abs goes to bed is out since she goes to sleep at 8:30.

[Sasha]

Terrible 2's - Please, I think we started the terrible two's somewhere around 16 months! I prefer phrasing it as "strong-willed." ;) She has only hit me once when she was super-upset, but she will do this somewhat weak swipe attempt at me on occasion, but it's like she full well knows not to actually make any contact...it's actually somewhat humorous, but we still give her a firm "no" if she does it.

Eating as a Family - We make a concerted effort to eat together at least 3-4 times a week. It's tough since we both work-full time and Sarah likes to eat by 6:00. What makes it a bit more difficult is due to DH's recent medical diagnosis (wheat allergy), we can no longer do any of the quick prepartion foods, like pasta or a Boboli pizza. And Sarah won't ever eat what we eat, so there is a 2 meal preparation involved. Long-winded way of saying that some nights we eat all together, sometimes DH and I will eat while she plays and sometimes we just prefer an "adult dinner" after she goes to sleep.

ETA - The "eating as a family" question made me wonder - what time do you give your child an afternoon snack and then dinner? At daycare, she gets her snack at 3:00, so by 6:00 she is demanding dinner. I would love to be able to push her back to 6:30 for dinner, but the only way to hold her off is to give her a second snack at 5:30 and then it ruins her appetite for dinner. Just curious what others do!

[DisneyGirl]

Terrible 2's- Puh-lease. We have been having fits at this house since she was born! :p I have one spirited little Irish baby on my hands! I usually try to distract, but the kid has a total one-track mind. She doesn't really throw things or hit when she is mad, but man can she turn on the water-works! DH and I think she has a real future in acting. ;)



OMG, OMG!!! Nikki is the same FREAKIN way!!!! Since day one she has been none stop..over reacting an all!! I am so at my wits end with her and I have no Idea how the heck to contol her. She is also a fighting Irish and now lets just thow some german attitude to the fire..OH GOSH!

I so feel for you........I really really do!

[tgray99]

Hey y'all, sorry I've been MIA, between moving and not having internet and not being able to get on CC at work, I haven't been by. Also, Ryan is leaving for the sandbox this weekend so I've been spending time with him a lot too. Pray for his safety and the safety of all the soldiers over there. Pray for Aidan and me too as we're without him for at least a year. :(

[ahavnes]

Disney- I feel for you too! How do you do it with another child to also take care of?

Tara- I will keep you all in my prayers. Hopefully this year will just fly by!!

Sasha- Abbey eats about every 2 hours in the afternoon. I give her a small snack before her nap at 1:45, then when she gets up around 4pm, then a small dinner at 6 and a little of our dinner at 7pm. Not ideal, but I just can't figure out what else to do!!

[happy1nuv]

Dinner together ~ Yep, every night. We eat later than I'd like (usually around 6:30/6:45) but I insist. Nic eats better when he eats with us...He does get a pretty good snack around 4 ... that seems to be early enough to keep him from not being hungry but late enough that he can last til dinner. He does pick while i cook though (like, if im chopping veggies, he comes to investigate and do some quality control) ... And we're a no tv during dinner house too :)

tara ~ Prayers for a quick and safe year for you all!

So... we had early intervention out today. Nic qualifies (I was shocked...I really thought they'd tell me he's a little behind but perfectly within bounds). He has 21 month old comprehension, but only 10 month old (i forget what they called it...but the talking part). So, next week we meet with a coordinator and then we enter therapy. It's all done at our house and our fees will be based on what dh makes (no clue what yet). It's actually pretty good timing i'm thinking, because it should be starting a few weeks after child#2 arrives, so it will give nic something to look forward to... The few things that we're supposed to start doing with him in the mean time:
-Give him choices of everything we can, and give him words to try and say...like, do you want milk or juice and praise for any sounds that come out of his mouth. Pointing is good, but talking is better.
-Repeat one word when you do stuff... like, bounce bounce bounce as you bounce on a ball...wash, wash, wash when in tub, roll roll roll when rolling a ball... and praise a ton if any attempt to make a sound is made

They also said something interesting... he's not big on playing with stuff by himself unless it involves stacking or throwing. The two skills are sort of related, so we're supposed to work on playing with stuff too... pushing trucks around, etc. Funny thing is ... I think he's really good at that stuff. He doesn't have the best attention span, but he can focus for quite a while when he's into something... (But, he spends more than 2/3 of the day throwing toys - all toys without regard to what they actually are used for, so that is something we should work on... they also suggested taking just one toy to an area to play with it instead of playing where ALL the toys are in the family room. Umm, sure ... no problem. Our house is NOT that big!) But we're supposed to work on playing with toys, not just throwing them...

All right...gotta start dinner if we want to eat tonight...
:)

[Carissa]

i stopped getting my notices :( need to catch up.

[kimthebride]

happy1
Out of curiosity, what does Nic say?

[jmvan74]

tgray: Hoping this year flys by so Ryan is back home w/ you and Aidan. I can't even begin to imagine what you must be going through. *HUGS*

Happy: Glad the delay was caught so early. I'm sure Nic will be on track in no time flat.

[DisneyGirl]

Disney- I feel for you too! How do you do it with another child to also take care of?



I have no idea how I do it really. I keep telling my DH and anyone that will listen that I need to take a parenting class for parents with strong willed toddlers. Because, I have No clue what to do with her. She is so strong willed and will throw a fit at the drop of a hat. Now, lets add a new baby to the mix in 6 months..WHAT am I nuts or what!!:eek: :eek: I just pray that my other child is not as strong willed and high strung..

[allyray231]

Tara- thinking of you guys

[Aunt Liv]

tara - {{{HUGS}}} from me too. I'll be praying for your husband's safe trip and return.

happy1 - One of my very best friend's son was exactly in the same boat. He would grunt but not talk at all at 2 years old. Since he turned 2, they have been working with him to make him "use his words" rather than point, and his vocabulary has grown tremendously. Like your son, he understood absolutely everything, but wouldn't talk. Now, you can't shut him up. :p Good luck with it, and please keep us posted. I think you'll see HUGE changes very soon.

Well, I must say that it makes me feel a MILLION times better to read all the stories about the terrible twos. It's nice knowing that I'm not alone. I just wish she would listen! And I know that a lot of stuff she does is really to push my buttons and to see how I'll react. I've started putting her in time out on the "naughty stairs" with an egg timer and she's *finally* staying for the duration (1 minute until she turns 2, then it will be 2 minutes). Although she doesn't really get the time-out, I figure that if I'm consistent with it, she'll eventually understand that it's because she's being naughty and not listening to mommy.

[psusna]

Tara: Keeping your family and all of Ryan's unit in our thoughts and prayers. Enjoy your weekend!

Happy: Good for you for being proactive! I agree, Nic will be a chatter box in no time.

Snack: DS gets a snack at school at 3 but he acts starved when we get home (5). He is typically satisfied with a piece of cheese or a cracker until dinner is ready.

NO!: NO has come on fast and furious this week and it makes me cringe. He uses these inflections when he says it too which makese it hard not to laugh sometimes. I'm not looking forward to the behavior for the next few months.

[happy1nuv]

Kim ~ He says dada, uhoh, yea, and baby ...but, not necessarily in context. More like he babbles the sounds that make up those words (although yesterday i asked him if wanted a banana and he said yea, yea, yea :) ...i was proud. One thing they noted was that he plays with his mouth open ... I don't know the significance of that, but they thought it was something worth noting.

Terrible 2's: Yup we've got them here too... I'm torn because we really have no place to do timeouts, and I know most of the tantrums we get are because he wants something but cant communicate. I REALLY hope I'm not raising a brat here... but until he gets a lil more verbal i think im just sticking with redirection... AND... DH worked from home yesterday so he could be here for Nic's eval ...guess who was the happiest child in the world yesterday? Ahuh... DH thinks I'm making up how hard some of our recent days have been...

[tgr68]

Terrible 2s~Yes! Some days are just awful! I'm relieved that this week has been much better. *Knock on wood.* Her new thing, though, is to bring me a book and say "Mommy read, now!" :eyeroll: We've had to revisit the word please a lot.

Eating Together~We've tried to do this since day 1. We also try to not eat dinner in front of the TV, but that doesn't always happen on American Idol nights. :p

psusna~Thanks!

Alien~Thanks!

Food~DD has been rejecting some of her favorites lately as well. The most baffiling instance has been with cheese. She'll chew it up, than spit it into our hands saying "Ucky gross."

tgray~I will be keeping your family in my prayers! Thank you for making this sacrifice so that I can enjoy the country I live in. My sister is in the midst of having her FH overseas, so I can sympathize some with what you will soon be going through because I've seen her live it. {{{HUGS}}}

Snack~DD usually gets one mid-afternoon when she gets up from her nap just to tie her over till dinner. If she acts hungry in the morning (10ish), which is rare, I'll give her a snack then, too.

Potty Training~Well, we're making the big move here today to underwear! :eek: I'm not 100% sure that she's ready but we've so many frustrations that I'm hoping can be solved by this. For example, when we ask her if she needs to potty, she'll maintain eye contact as she backs up to a corner/wall, squats, and pees or poops in her pull-up. :mad: Then she'll tell us "Pee Dora. No-no. Pee toilet." :eyeroll: So far so good this morning! *Knock on wood.*

[DisneyGirl]

NO LOL LOL! That was DD first word along with NOWAY!

Preschoo I signed Nikki up for a preschool program this morning( 2 days a week). I just had to. I had to get her involved with kids her own age in hopes that she will learn to behave better..HEHEHEH I really was not going to sign her up and I was so torn since i think 2 is just so young to start. But, with a toddler like her..I really was out of options.

[rancherswife]

Yeah, I agree with those that said the TT's started at about 16 mos., that's about when it started with Landon too!

Well, I intended to do a more lengthy post, but Landon is asking for his "toe" (toast) and I've gotta get him ready, he's going to work with Brett today! So, I'll bbl to hopefully catch up!

[cynder]

Tara You and your family are in my prayers and that Ryan will stay safe.

happy A co-worker of mine had a similar situation and were given similar types of things to work on. They also have food texture issue to work on too. They were basically told that without intervention that he would eventually work it all out and be fine but that working on it now could improve his frustration and interactions.

I don't think you're raising a brat! I am in the camp of redirection. It took us a long time but the "please" sign changed our lives significantly. I would say we saw like a 50% decline in whining and tantrums. But don't worry, we still get our fair share!

NO We get the word here and there but we get the head shaking all the time!

Snack Gets a light snack at daycare around 4:00. By 6:00, he's climbing the pantry to get "crak!".

[Carissa]

Terrible 2s So glad I am not the only one dealing with this. No has become a favorite word lately and hitting and pinching she thinks is fun too.

You guys would laugh at the chaos in my house some days with Grace and Jonah. Like yesterday she tried to brush his hair with the dog brush that has metal prongs, Jonah now has a nice row of scratches on his head.

[Sasha]

Tara - Your family will be in my thoughts and I am hoping for a safe return for Ryan.

Disney - I think Nikki will enjoy the socialization aspect and hopefully she will begin mimicking other kids behavior. Plus, you'll get a well-needed break! ;)

No - A very popular word in our house too!

[jmvan74]

Oh Carissa! I feel for you! Collin tried to hug Brady and completely slammed his head into Brady's. Tears all around! Ugghh.

[tgr68]

Carissa and Julie~Poor little ones! :( It's awfully sweet that their siblings are trying to help out though!

[ahavnes]

Potty Training Experts!!! I know I need to just break down and buy a book, but in the meantime....Abbey is refusing to sit on her potty lately. I am bummed b/c she was doing so well! Now she'll just tell us that she needs to have her diaper changed. :rolleyes: Should I put her on the potty even if she doesn't want to? The last thing I want is for this to become yet another battle of the wills...:cool:

tgr68- Abbey does that "Mama read" thing all the time too. She also tells me where to sit. :o Bossy bossy! ;)

happy1- I am really impressed that they came to your house and are so proactive. Please keep up updated on Nic's progress. When is #2 due?

Disney- It will be interesting to see how Nikki acts at daycare. Abbey is super strong willed at home, but very passive with other children lately.

[alienhost]

Happy1 That's great that you contacted EI. I think it is a great program and I think you will learn a lot from the visits that will help both you and Nic. DD attends a weekly group session through EI, although she no longer qualifies for services, they invited her to come, there are several 2-3 year olds with speach delays and I've seen improvement even in the 2 months we've been there. Before you know it he will be talking your ear off!

Tgray thinking of you, your family and Ryan and hoping he stays safe.

Disney I agree w/ Sasha that preschool sounds like it will be good for N and for you too.

PM snack usually after her nap, so around 2 or 3. Somtimes if we go out to do errands she wants to snack so it is more like 4, which ruins her dinner :(, I haven't figured out how to keep her away from snacking too much before dinner.

No yes, we have a lot of no's, too many really. ;)

[DisneyGirl]

I just told DH that I Signed Nikki up for preschool and he laughted. LOL He is betting his paycheck they call home about her behavior. Oh gosh...i sure hope not. I agree that maybe this will be a great thing for her and I.
And the best part!!! Is DS and her will go to school at the same day/time which mean one on one time with the new baby.

[tgr68]

Alicia~I would continue to ask her if she needs to sit on the toilet. If she says "no", tell her "that's okay, but let mommy know if you need to potty". We honestly have come off about a 6-week regression ourselves. Just keep at it and stay calm when she does go in her diaper. At each change encourage her to let you know when she needs to sit on the toilet.

Shylah's had two accidents today. The first time she told DH she needed to go, and we didn't get her to the bathroom fast enough. The second was when we went for a long walk. DH didn't think to put her on the toilet before we left. :rolleyes: Oh well. It's a learning process for all of us. She has though been very proud of her big girl underwear!

[rancherswife]

Ok, an attempt to catch up! :)

tgray: You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers and I hope this year goes by super fast for you and Aidan. Hang in there and ((hugs)).

dinner together: For the most part, we eat together, unless Brett is having a really late day, then I'll feed Landon at the normal time that we eat and then I'll wait for Brett to get home and we'll eat together. Lately, though, we've been able to all eat together. It's chaos a lot of the time, much like everything else is w/ a 21 mo. old! ;)

disney: I think Nikki will enjoy the pre-school, as will you. It'll be great for both of you, and perfect for when baby #3 arrives!

potty training: Yeah, that's kind of gone by the way side in the last week and a half, since Reece has arrived. He still goes when we strip him down to bathe him and after his bath, but besides that, I've been totally un-motivated to do it. I need to get back on track with that in the next couple of weeks I guess.

Things are going really well here. I'm actually shocked! I think Landon is adjusting to having a baby brother, we've had a couple of minor mishaps...the kisses turn into bites, twice now. He hadn't bit in months, and he's now bit Reece twice, luckily it's while I'm holding him and can get control of the situation right away, it's starts off very sweet, but the passion turns into violence, or something! Besides that, he's doing well. Reece is a really good baby so far. He reminds me a lot of Landon when he was a newborn. I feel unbelievably great. I honeslty don't feel like I gave birth last Monday. It's really crazy! Of course, I'm not sharing that with Brett, cause lord knows what kind of thoughts would go through his mind. Afterall, he's already talking about #3! Which I'm totally not opposed to, however, NOT in the near future! :)

Anyway...I better go get some stuff done, while I can!

[DisneyGirl]

Things are going really well here. I'm actually shocked! I think Landon is adjusting to having a baby brother, we've had a couple of minor mishaps...the kisses turn into bites, twice now. He hadn't bit in months, and he's now bit Reece twice, luckily it's while I'm holding him and can get control of the situation right away, it's starts off very sweet, but the passion turns into violence, or something! Besides that, he's doing well. Reece is a really good baby so far. He reminds me a lot of Landon when he was a