Dec '08 Mama's!!!

[jenniferadurham]

Hi mama's! Wanted to see who all is still out there???

DS is now 14 months...my, my how time has flown!!! DS is ALL OVER everywhere!! I can't keep him contained! He talks NON STOP and gets into everything. Typical 1 year old. He eats like a linebacker already. We are in for some trouble when he gets older and is eating more. His fav foods are: fruit of any kind, avacado's are a VERY close 2nd, meat...loves it, broccolli, corn, bread, he LOVES sucking his drink through the bottom of the straw as we hold it for him, he's not that into sweets.

He's wearing 18-24, mostly 24 though. He LOVES playing with and putting on other peoples shoes. He knows pretty much everything we are saying to him. He knows how to 'blow' on his hot food. DH taught him to 'rawr' like a lion...he has one in his room on the dresser and EVERY morning he does it when I come get him out of bed. I could eat him he's so cute!

We are TTC again...if we don't get pg this cycle we are going to skip a month bc we don't want another Dec baby...hahaha!

Other than all that, we are doing smashingly. Happy family all around.

How are you guys doing? Anymore babies about to be here? I know of smerkin..I think she's due in Aug and Candice(can't remember her screen name)...anyone else?


Hope to hear from all of you!!!

[Swandira]

Thanks for starting a thread!

Good luck with TTC.

O is 13 months and is so cute. He doesn't usually say as much as our first two did at this age, but just watches people very intently. Every now and then he does talk, though -- two days ago when he woke up he asked me, "Dada here?" (He's a big Dad-fan.) he mostly just says "Dat," and points at whatever he wants to direct our attention to.

He's a great eater -- eats pretty much any food we offer, but of course his favorite is still the boob. He's not such a great sleeper, but he's so cheerful and sweet that it's hard to get too annoyed with him.

Our biggest challenge with him now is the separation anxiety. Sometimes he'll cry for up to an hour if I leave him. I mostly try to avoid leaving him for now, to minimize everyone's stress. I only get to go to the gym on weekends and in the evening, which is usually when I try to do housework and get some writing time. I suppose it's temporary, so I can deal, but it's frustrating!

No babies on the horizon for me. O was, himself, an extreme surprise (appeared despite an IUD), so not surprisingly we're happy to stay with just the three we now have. I'd like to move on and be able to get more done than I can with a baby.

Anyway, O is (in theory, at least) our last baby, so I'm mostly trying to enjoy his sweet toddlerness while it lasts. He's so sweet that it's easy to appreciate him!

Nealy
mama to T (12/02), L (2/06), and O (12/12/08)

[jenniferadurham]

Yes! DS does the "dat" thing too! To everything! And I tell him what it is and he moves on to the next thing. DS is a huge "dada" fan as well. He notices dada in pictures. He only says mama when he gets upset. I guess that's what we're for anyhow. DS sleeps pretty good. I'm still giving him milk in a bottle () bc he gets so hungry at night if I don't...he'll wake up early early morning. We are going to buy the "baby can read" here in a few weeks...DS catches on so quickly...and it will help DD learn faster too!


We'd like 3 or 4. We'll see how 3 goes..LOL!


Glad to hear from you!

[Biscuits & Gravy]

K is almost 14 months. He doesn't have many words, just points and grunts mostly. It is fun to watch his little quirks and personality starting to come out. I was just showing our playgroup friends today how he likes to collect things. He gathers things that are alike all in one spot. He prefers to have them all in his hands and gets frustrated when he can't quite hold them. For example, if there are some trains he needs ALL of the trains in his hands. Today he was gathering pieces of a big foam puzzle in a pile and would not rest until they were all stacked together.

He is a little piggy. He'll eat just about anything put in front of him, especially fruit and meat of all kinds. He doesn't like sweets all that much still. We found out the other day that he is allergic to peanuts along with the dairy. I'm going to push for some testing to see if there is anything else. I'm a little overwhelmed by it right now.

[hotharmony]

I'm glad to see there are some Dec 08 mamas still around it seems like there have been several attempts at threads without success.

Xander is doing great he is 13 months and he is just all over the place. He eats like a linebacker. But this winter we have just had one cold after another and for some reason we end up having to give him nebulizer treatments after almost every cold to clear out his chest.

We are going to wait to TTC until his second birthday so we can just really take in all the fun of his toddlerhood right now. Also we can't possibly fit another living thing into our tiny house. And my husband will be done with school by then so hopefully we will know better what the next couple of years will be looking like.

I'm glad to hear your all doing great and good luck trying or not trying TTC.

[wembles]

Glad to see everyone's updates!

Lincoln is now 13 months. He is running now, and almost jumping. He is fearless--he will climb anything, and jump off anything, regardless of how high it is...so, needless to say, I am always on my toes! He is talking some--word of the moment is "dadyu"--meaning vacuum. He is currently obsessed with the vacuum. My floors have never been so clean, since he requests the "dadyu" at least twice a day...He also has 15-20 signs that he uses consistently. It is so fun to watch his little mind realize what a word or sign means

We are struggling a bit in the eating department. It is a rare day that he eats more than a few bites (of anything...all day long). We offer a wide range of food and he either throws it on the floor, or tastes it and spits it out. With the exception of graham crackers--he'd eat those all day, if I'd let him. He will drink a smoothie, so I try to cram as much as I can into those at least a few times a week (we like the green smoothies....). Hoping he starts enjoying food more soon. I've also been trying to offer some cow's milk...he doesn't seem to care much for that, either.

We are still nursing a lot, but I've been cutting back some to see if that will encourage him to eat. We've also been working on night weaning--we have a good 5-6 hour stretch now that is "milk free", and we are taking it pretty slow, but hope to stretch it out to 8 hours at some point. I have yet to have my first PPAF and we are hoping to try for #2, so I'm hoping that cutting back on the nursing will help!

[Curlyfry7]

Hey all! Glad to see the updates on everyone and our LO's.

Tessa is 13 1/2 months now and finally decided that walking is pretty cool. Not too many words here either- mama and hi, an she'll actually say "hi good girl" to our dogs, since everytime she touches one I am telling "good girl! good girl! Don't bite!"-not that they have but still. She does a couple signs, but would much rather shriek to get what she wants, LOL. Verbally and gross motor-wise she is behind where her brother was at this age, but she is way ahead of him in fine motor skills.

She is a major momma's girl- I can barely put her down for a second, so it's a good thing she's pretty tiny-still wearing 9-12 months, with the 9 fitting well and most of the 12 mo a bit big. Definitely likes food finally, but still nursing 5-6 times /day and about 1857629395 times per night (4-5 or more). I haven't gotten my PPAF back yet and we are probably planning to TTC this fall for #3 so I am tentatively planning to nightwean around 18 months if I haven't gotten it yet to make TTC a little easier.

It's so fun to see the similarities and differences between her and DS.

[quantumleap]

Fun! I was just wondering what everyone was up to.

Maren is also running and *climbing* everything. She started taking steps around 11 months, but she was a little over a year before she really became bipedal. The climbing is a little alarming, but she seems quite capable so I'm trying to just let her explore. She is also obsessed with writing utensils, and has recently started sneaking off and colouring on random things - walls, bookshelves, etc. She has a few words - mama, papa, finit, uh oh, our dog's name, her doll's name, and a few signs, primarily "more" and the ever important "nurse". She also really loves to "reorganize". I find onions in the office, my wallet in the (front loading) washing machine, a screwdriver in her toy box, etc, etc. She's fun, but I'm also really struggling with discipline.

M screams a lot. She knows what she wants and shrieks until she gets it. I'm trying really hard to redirect and am uber quick to respond when she communicates without screaming, but it drives me nuts. She knows what she should/shouldn't be doing, and loves to do the reverse. We try not to have to many rules, but certain things, like hitting the dog, are sort of non-negociable.

Do you guys have any tactics? I know screaming is sort of the default communication mode - how else are they supposed to communicate? - but there's got to be a way to discourage it while encouraging alternate communication!

We're also ttc. We have to use donor sperm and I'm trying not to get too worked up about it. The reality is that I'm no where near as "prepared" this time (accupuncture, chiro, herbs, etc), and I'm a little concerned about how the current (very frequent, especially at night) nursing schedule is going to affect things. The first go is scheduled for about two weeks from now. I'm hopeful, but also totally understand those of you who are waiting - it's a little insane to think of TWO babies, and sad to think of losing the serious one on one time with DD. But, mostly, exciting to think of adding another little wonder, and a sibling for Maren.

[Mommy2anangel]

Hi mamas!!! Good to see this thread. I haven't been on MDC in such a long time. DD is 14 months old and only just starting to walk. She still prefers crawling but is picking up walking. I love the toddling stage.. hehe.

She is pretty tiny as well. I make most of her clothes so I'm not really sure what sizes she wears, but I think it's probably smaller than average. She was in the 5th percentile for her weight at her 12 month checkup.

Good luck to those mamas TTC; we're not really trying but we're not preventing. We'll just take it as it comes.

She absolutely loves to eat and drink. She would eat anything and everything that I give her. But her absolute faves are strawberries, blueberries and baby tomatoes. And she loves drinking her brother's drinks out of straws. But she would snack on my boob all day long too. She is so attached to it, it's the sweetest thing. She needs to hold onto it for sleep and for comfort. She doesn't sleep very well either. She sleeps from about 8 until 12 or so and then wakes every hour or two to nurse until about 7 or 8 again. But I don't mind, she's just too cute.. lol.

And her and big brother get along so well. The love each other so much. They play really well together.

Great to hear all the updates!!!

[smerkin]

Great to "hear" how everyone is doing!!

Libby is almost 14 months now and is growing up so fast! She doesn't talk much but does a few signs and understands almost everything. She follows simple commands like pick that up and put it there, etc... She loves playing in the mixing bowls and tupperware and will put everything back when she's done. Also does not like "trash". If I wipe her nose I have to throw the tissue away immediately because she wrinkles up her nose and says "ehhh t-ash, ehhh". She'll also bring little pieces of paper to me and do the same thing. Too funny!!

Loves to help pick up her toys and responds really well to praise. Plus, I think she's going to be a bit of a neat freak like her daddy.

She walks everywhere (started at 10 months) and climbs up and down our stairs with ease. Loves to read books with me and will sit for longer and longer periods of time.

Has a doll that she loves to play with but also loves anything soft.

Loves hair bows! She has pretty long hair so I pull it away from her eyes and put it in a clip or band so it's not in her face. Every day she asks for a bow and we go and pick one out for the day. Fun!

She's my little friend and companion, I really cannot imagine life without her and am really trying to cherish these days. I'm 16 weeks pregnant so she won't have much only child time.

Glad everyone's babes are doing well and growing, enjoy them!!

[Lauren710]

I was just wondering if we had a thread here! Good to see everyone again I don't come around the boards too much.. aside from babywearing (we still wrap 3+ times a day, more on the weekends when we're actually home together), I ended up way less crunchy than I intended so don't really feel comfortable here most of the time. Life had other plans for us, I guess. Still having major issues from the "birth"/inability to BF.

Alice is 13.5 months now. Starting to walk a bit, she's been standing for months now but she's got a lot of fluid trapped in her ears that we think has been affecting her balance as well as her hearing. We're scheduled to have tubes put in next week, we weighed all our options and this seems to be the best solution for her. LOOOOVES to eat, I can't believe the appetite she has! If she doesn't like what I offer her, she spits it into her hand and gives it back to me We adopted a dog in November and she and Alice are BFFs, I think it's mostly because Alice always manages to have some kind of food or snot hidden in/on her clothes somewhere. LOL. It's super cute to watch the two of them interact. Lots of words and almost words - "Dat!" is her favorite word, dad and dog sound very similar, it's MAMAMAMAMAMA when she's upset about anything.. she's making a lot of different sounds that aren't quite actual words yet, but she's always babbling. It's adorable She's my little cuddlemuffin, it's crazy how much you can love these silly little people.

I'm in school full-time so Alice is at a day care center five days a week. She loves her teachers and has a partner in crime, another little blonde girl that she causes trouble with. She's always happy to go there in the morning, but just as happy to see me at the end of the day, so it's working out really well for us.

We're also having some trouble with discipline here.. Most of the time I just think the things she does are hilarious, but setting boundaries (mostly for safety reasons - i.e. hitting the dog or attempting to pull over the floor lamps!) doesn't go over too well. She'll have throwing-herself-on-the-ground tantrums when things don't go her way. Wrapping definitely comes in handy for times like that - I can just throw her on my back and move on to something else to distract her and keep her out of trouble.

No plans to TTC anytime in the near future, possibly not ever. Not sure how I feel about that. I feel like I need to fix all the mistakes I made with A and I feel like I'll never come to terms with everything that happened with her if I don't get a chance to do it again. DH would be thrilled if I decide that I don't want another baby, I know he doesn't want one. We're not in any financial position for another baby anyway, so that's a conversation for a few years down the road.

[smerkin]

Originally Posted by Lauren710

Alice is 13.5 months now. Starting to walk a bit, she's been standing for months now but she's got a lot of fluid trapped in her ears that we think has been affecting her balance as well as her hearing. We're scheduled to have tubes put in next week, we weighed all our options and this seems to be the best solution for her.

So sorry she has that problem! My niece did right around that same age and after the tubes got put in she has been doing MUCH better. She was "behind" a bit verbally but I bet the poor kid couldn't hear anything. Hope the tubes help your little Alice!

[MrsBone]

Yay thanks for posting this. I've been wanting to just go on and on about my LO. Ethan is 13 months, will be 14 months on Feb. 26th. He's almost walking. He can, just isn't quite brave enough yet He has 11 teeth, weighs 25 lbs and is 32 1/2 inches tall. In size 18-24 month clothing, still nursing. He usually eats more for my family than he does at home (hes got his nur nurs at home). his favorite foods are avocado, banana, beans, any meat, strawberries, sweet potatoes, potatoes, mushrooms, plain yogurt, dried cherries and raisins, applesauce, canned green beans, any cooked veggie/meat combination. He's starting to get picky with veggies. Usually will only eat them if they are cooked with other foods/spices. Says only a few words, mama, dada, nur nur(nurse), baby, but babbles and has conversations like crazy! part time crib sleeper, mostly cosleeping...hm..what else?? He's a very happy baby, and loves to be surrounded by chaos, aka his cousins a couple times a week. Love this new stage!

[leavemealone]

I don't think I have ever ventured into this forum, but I did click on it today. My little guy was born 12/7 so he's about 14.5 months now. He's so funny when he interacts with his older brother (about 3.5 years old). He's a good napper, but not a good sleeper at night. I hope it's just related to the four molars he's getting in right now. He's has a few good nights where he sleeps, but mostly he still gets up at least once a night. That's getting pretty tough to deal with since I'm about 31 weeks pregnant now but we'll get through. The new baby will be baby #4 and that should be it for us. This one totally wasn't planned, but will be welcomed nonetheless. It will be interesting to see the interaction between our Dec 08 baby and the April 2010 baby b/c they'll only be about 16-17 months apart.