FEB 2010 October Thread

[Ninetales]

Happy October everyone!

If you're dressing up your baby for Halloween, what are they going to be? Elsa is going to be a pink and yellow dinosaur. Luckily my mom is helping me out by making her costume - I have no sewing skills at all. She always made us really nice costumes so I like that she's doing it for Elsa too.

So, for those of you doing BLW, can you tell me about serving the food? I've been giving Elsa very small pieces of food but now I'm reading that this isn't really appropriate - that I should be giving her pieces of food the size of her fist. Which makes sense because she will hold it and suck/chew it. But what about food that is already smaller than her fist? Peas and bananas and whatnot. Do I soften and mash everything that is smaller than her fist? When can she eat "finger foods?" I'm not finding much that answers my specific questions, so hopefully you guys can.

I mentioned she's been screaming in her stroller and her carriers on our walks lately, and now she's thrown carseat screaming into the mix. Not fun, especially since it started Saturday when we went to my godson's birthday party two hours away. If it keeps up I may get her convertible sooner rather than waiting for her to outgrow her bucket. Maybe she wants to be more upright.

[OlyR]

hello!

it's been so long! Buuut I just figured out how to subscribe to a post so I should be able to find this post more often.

DS --- he is capable of crawling but prefers to worm his way around because he can go way faster. Looks harder to me, but whatever works, right? He can pull up on everything and has just started to be a daredevil and let go to see what happens -- sometimes he has enough balance to be standing for a few seconds.

I am scared to put him in his crib (as if he really sleeps in it much anyways, ha) b/c he pulls up then he lets go and launches himself toward the other side to see if he can grab the opposite rails - I just know he's going to miss and hit his head or something.

We do BLW. I'm with you on the food dilema. He loves avocado but it frustrates him beyond belief when it squishes in his hands. Another example - He loves sushi (avocado or cucumber rolls) but gets distracted by the rice stuck to his hands. As for avocado I have started mashing it on toast strips and he loves it. Same could be done with bannana I bet. In the last week I have started letting him play with puffs to work on pincer grasp and he's pretty good at working things into his mouth with one or both hands and occassionally does do a finger grasp but mostly still palms his food. In some instances I end up having to help him more than I originally planned to (getting the food into his hand, wiping his hands off mid-meal, and sometimes helping him with the first couple bites) or else he will scream at the food. boo oh well, doing what works for us!

Halloween - he's going to be raggedy andy. I bought him red and white stripe baby legs I figure I get to pick all the cutesy things I want for a few years

[Ambystoma]

Halloween: we were originally going to be the Borg, but it seems like a lot of work and franky, I'm very busy! Not to mention DS would probably pull it all to pieces in 3 seconds. So, I'm sewing superhero costumes. The Flash or Green Lantern for DS, Green Arrow for DH, and I'm Poison Ivy (I prefer villains).

Is anyone else's baby pinching? DS has mastered that pincer grasp and is now using it on my arms! I have bruises!

[flavorfull1]

So, life is hard right now. I was going to try to respond to what everyone posted but I just don't have much left in me. We moved to Manhattan this past Tuesday. I miss my friends, I miss peace and quiet, and I miss being familiar with something, anything. I know it takes time to adjust, I just miss my life and moving is hard. I really don't know anyone here and I am kind of at a loss where to start to connect with other moms. The apartment my DH chose is great and the space is perfect for us. The only down side is that our landlord has NEVER rented to anyone so the apartment was super dirty from her daughter when we moved in. I have spent the past several days wiping/cleaning every surface possible so that we can put away things. I am super annoyed because I am literally having to clean the walls and some of it is just going to be marked up. Is it expecting too much to want a place that doesn't have someone else's hair in it? UGH! ok I am going to try to keep my whining to a minimum but I will probably bring it all up again soon, sorry about that. On a happy note, DS now has two front teeth and is starting to adjust to our new place. Hope everyone is doing well!

[SunRise]

flavorfull1 - is it possible for you tire hire a cleaning person for a few hours and then you and your babe go for a walk and check out your new neighbourhood, find a park ... You must be exhausted after that big move. Try not to do everything at once.

We are in Canada - celebrating thanksgiving weekend, a wedding and a couple birthdays. Baby girl is doing great; although I have noticed she prefers to be in my arms now rather then someone else's... I wonder why she got "shy"; a week ago she enjoyed other people. She doesnt smile as easy for others either.

[OlyR]

flavorfull - ugh, that sounds rough - all of it, the cleaning, the being in a new place. I'm sure things are getting better and better by the day though - good luck

[Nicole730]

flavorfull1 - Yuck about having to actually scrub down and clean up the place. I found all sorts of dog hair in the cabinets when we bought our house - ick!!

Halloween - probably a bear, I bought a costume last year on clearance. DS has a bear suit too, so I'm thinking two bears. We were going to do an elephant (DS) and a peanut (DD), but DS screams when the elephant costume gets near him, so I don't think that's going to happen

DD is not crawling yet, or even army crawling. She has been up on hands and knees and rocking for over a month now with no sign of moving forward. She can pull up though! I put her on the floor next to the toddler bed while I got DS dressed. I turn around and she is standing up holding onto the bed! She is nowhere near sturdy/balanced enough to be doing that on her own without injuries, so I am going to have to keep a closer eye on her now.

Sunrise - Elsa is also starting to be wanting me more often and crying at strangers and not as smiley. I don't remember DS going throw the stranger anxiety stage.

[flavorfull1]

Thanks everyone. Things are looking up today, still getting cleaning done but feeling like I am making some headway now. We can't afford cleaners right now but we were able to get a good rate on four weeks for a diaper service. We do not have a washer or dryer in the apartment but there is a laundry room downstairs in the basement. Today I washed his over night diapers in the sink, which actually worked really well.
I am really missing all of my friends tomorrow I am going to an AP mom play group so I am hoping it will be really cool. I just want to talk to mom friends. DH is great but I really want some moms.
DS is taking off like crazy. He pulls up on everything and is starting to cruise. He now has two front upper teeth and two bottom ones. He is crazy about food and is definitely starting the whole 9 month sleep regression thing. DH and I have had to wear him for his morning nap and for several hours at night. I know this is just made worse by the move so I am hoping it lets up some before DH starts work on Monday. Another development is the whole separation anxiety thing. DS will start crying if I leave the bedroom or basically his sight. It isn't all of the time but it is definitely much more. He is also very verbal and a very giggly boy. I love him so much and have so much fun with him. He is one cool dude
Oh as far as the BLW thing, I am not sure I am doing it correctly but if it is something that seems hard or too big I will soften it or break it into a smaller piece. I hate the whole gagging thing. I know he isn't choking but it is alarming at times. DS really likes apples and it kind of drives me crazy making sure he doesn't bite of a huge chunk.
I am sorry I am not doing well with responding individually to anyone. I am reading and keeping up with you all and it is nice to have something familiar in the midst of all of this change. Hope everyone is doing well! Oh and happy thanksgiving sunrise, I remember this time last year fondly

[Ambystoma]

I am just popping in to say hello and bump our thread up to the 1st page. How is everyone doing?

We are planning winter trips: Thanksgiving and last week of December/new years to visit relatives. We want to keep Yule/Christmas traditions at our own house in the future, so we won't be traveling anymore until the 27th or so. Is anyone traveling during winter holidays?

BLW suddenly took off with gusto. DS is munching pretty much a full meal every evening, despite right BFing before. He loves food now. He's had pork, BBQ ribs (well, rib), onion, ravioli, baked potato, sushi (cali roll-hated it), cookie (thanks, daddy), chicken, dressing, and bread.

Anyone else still waiting on PP AF? Still nada over here, and I wouldn't mind the return for peace of mind.

[SunRise]

We travel (4 hours) to my parents farm for Christmas. All my family lives in that area. Last year we decided to stay at home for Christmas eve / morning and then made the drive up north in the afternoon. That worked out really well (and saved me from lugging my kids gifts up there and back). We will do that again this year. I also want to stay in a hotel in Ottawa for a night or two and visit the museums and other things.

Lucy still loves her food...curried potatoes and beef, spiced up apples and oatmeal, she is keen on it all.


I have had post partum af for several months ... since about 5 months.

Its time I start doing sit-ups....ugh.

[Perdita_in_Ontario]

We're back from a trip out to Vancouver Island for Thanksgiving. DH ran his first marathon (yeah DH!).

DS handled the trip very well. His eating is ramping up - turns out he loves salmon, and he'll eat whatever vegetables and carbs (bread, toast, bagel, rusk) I offer him - he still doesn't like fruits though. For both him and his sister, it seems like pure BLW doesn't work - she and now he prefer me to offer him little bites of food. He'll handle his rusks himself, but anything else he prefers tiny bites. So, that's what we're doing for now.

He has started to wave at people, and clap, which is fun. He is still rolling around the room rather than crawling, and has just started pulling himself to a stand (eek). He's also talking constantly - mamama, bababa, dadad, gagag, and variations thereof.

No teeth yet. DD was 10.5 months before she cut a tooth and it seems he's going to be the same too.

And no return yet of AF. DD was 16 months before mine came back - once I stopped pumping at work. I'm not going back to work this time, so it's anyone's guess when AF will return.

We saw BIL and his wife and their 11-week-old while we were out there. Their little guy isn't adapting to the world very well - they are low-touch parents and BIL is actually a bit rough with him (not on purpose - he's just a bull-in-a-china shop type guy). They also leave him to cry in his crib to "get him used to it". He cries a lot, is tense, and acts like a brand-new newborn. He doesn't fit the criteria for colic at all, and he seems to snuggle down a lot and relax when someone else holds him so I hope they get it figured out - they don't seem to be enjoying themselves right now, but don't really get that there's stuff they could be doing differently - I tried to wear and nurse DS a LOT in their company to show them there's another way... but it's not really my business if they're not asking for advice. DH and I both felt like we wanted to steal him away and plop him in a Moby (I gave her mine but she's never tried it) and see if that made a difference .

Hallowe'en - DS is going to be in his MT while we do the rounds with DD, so he'll be in a snowsuit and I'm knitting him a little devil's hat (just finished the one I'm sending out to his little cousin and it looks awesome!).

[Ninetales]

No AF here yet, and I'm glad for it. She can stay away for another 18 months as far as I'm concerned. I don't need the peace of mind since we dtd so seldom I doubt it's likely I'll get pg again.

Food is still pretty slow going here. Part of the problem is different schedules, so we don't end up eating dinner together, and during the day I eat when she naps, so there just aren't a lot of opportunities. I'm ok not rushing it if she is, though. It did work out nicely the other night when my sister-in-law was over for dinner and we weren't having anything I felt comfortable giving Elsa, so I spooned some applesauce on her high chair tray and let her go to town on it.

Seven teeth here.

As the holidays get closer I am more and more glad both sets of our parents live in the same town. It will make things so much easier. My dad is further upstate but makes the trip all the time so we'll be meeting up down here.

We do have a family wedding in a few weeks about seven hours away. That should be interesting. I just picked up a new convertible carseat for Elsa that should take up less room and sit her up higher - hopefully that works out for the trip.

[Lauren31]

My baby has no teeth but she is teething! hahaha I still have no period and she nurses ALL night long haha. Solids are going fine. She eats whatever we are eating and I do not stress about her eating three meals a day. I went to the la leche league meeting here and met some new friends who are AP minded! WOO HOO!!

[Nicole730]

Re: winter trips - I convinced DH we should stay in town for Thanksgiving (yay!) and then for Christmas we decided to have it at our house this year. I planned on inviting both sides of the family, but he doesn't want to. So, my family will be coming over for the meal Christmas Day sometime in the afternoon. To me, it makes the most sense that the ones with the little kids should get the most say in the matter. Our schedules are the hardest to juggle. And right now, on both of our sides - we are the only ones with kids. Both sets of siblings are single in their 20s. I have no idea when we'll visit his side (3 hour drive) for the holiday, but it will either be a couple weeks before or after Christmas. DS is dragging at me to get off the computer, I'll try to remember to come back and finish this later.

[Ambystoma]

Originally Posted by Ninetales

Seven teeth here.

What the what? Wow, holy chompers, Batman. DS's 3rd just popped through this evening and I thought that was a lot!

[flavorfull1]

haha I read that too and was like wow, I thought four was alot! We are definitely getting settled here. DS finally adjusted enough to go back to a regular nap and bed time which is nice! Now he has a cold which only affects his sleeping, while awake he is all smiles and happiness
Re:AF- yeah I have had mine since 3 or 4 months pp and that is with my kid eating at least 14 or more times a day every day. I wish it had stayed away longer!
Food- we had our first gagging/choking episode where I had to actually reach in and get the food out of his throat. It was scary but short. He cried and then went back to stuffing his face. I was definitely the more disturbed by it. It was on avocado too, seriously? It was squishy he just loves it and stuffed his face with it really fast, sigh.
Holidays- this will be the first year that we cannot travel to both sides for Christmas. we will travel to my side of the family and because of expense and life, we won't go anywhere for Thanksgiving. I am not really bummed about not seeing the IL's but his more extended family is fun and I will miss the holiday family time.
In other news, we got our first noise complaint and DH started work this past monday. The lady downstairs came up to tell us to stop running around and making so much noise. Odd, DS cannot run around and DH and I were just sitting with him. We have put down rugs but she was irritated. Oh well, we will do our best but I cannot walk on egg shells while living my life. DH seems to really enjoy his coworkers and is so busy already! Ok, I have rambled enough, fun to hear from you all, I was starting to worry our ddc was over

[Ninetales]

I'm shocked by all the teeth too. They started coming early and just haven't stopped. She has four on top, and three on bottom.

What's hilarious (and sad) is that people assume I'm no longer breastfeeding, or are pumping now because there's no way anyone could possibly bf a baby with teeth or something. Wth? I mean, yeah, I've been bitten a few times but nothing major.

[aramat]

Hi, everybody! Good to see you guys! Have been following the thread but not much to post. Julianna has 6 teeth. She is saying "Mama", "Papa", and "Baba" (which means "nanny" in Portuguese), all of which just happen to be extremely easy words for babies to say...but I know she is at least saying "Mama" on purpose. She is still not crawling but loves to pull herself up and stand. She is 26 pounds -- huge, sturdy, chubby, and I LOVE that she is so big; she doesn't look anything like the little preemie I birthed 10 months ago!

Flavorful -- Enjoy NYC!!

[Nicole730]

Originally Posted by aramat

Hi, everybody! Good to see you guys! Have been following the thread but not much to post. Julianna has 6 teeth. She is saying "Mama", "Papa", and "Baba" (which means "nanny" in Portuguese), all of which just happen to be extremely easy words for babies to say...but I know she is at least saying "Mama" on purpose. She is still not crawling but loves to pull herself up and stand. She is 26 pounds -- huge, sturdy, chubby, and I LOVE that she is so big; she doesn't look anything like the little preemie I birthed 10 months ago!

Flavorful -- Enjoy NYC!!

Wowzers! She is a big girl! My little boy (2.5) just hit 27lbs and I was so excited. That's good that she isn't still looking like a preemie. And so cute on the words. We still have babbling here. DH claims she says Dadadada, but I don't hear it.

[Lauren31]

Wow! I thought DD was big at 22 lbs!!!