***July 2005*** Let's have fun in December!!! - Page 3

[Hey Mama!]

Hey all! I had no idea the July 05 moms were still active. I kept looking for threads in Life with a Babe instead of Toddlers. I guess I don't really see Gabriella as a toddler yet . She's my last baby so I guess I'm trying to make it last.

We do not nurse anymore due to me desperately needing some medication that I did not feel comfortable taking while nursing-so we weaned in October while I was away from home visiting my dying grandmother. Gabriella really didn't seem that affected by weaning, she was down to only nursing to sleep for nap. I work nights so she hasn't nursed to sleep at bedtime for a long time now. My dh does all the bedtime stuff with all the girls, and I think they prefer it because on my days off if I try they get crazy. All 3 of them crying and being hysterical. I have made dh take over bedtime with each of the girls once they hit the year mark so he could have quality time with them.

For Christmas Gabriella is getting a pj/robe set and a baby doll all her own. That's about all I have picked up for her. We are getting them a wooden kitchen for all to play with. We don't really do a lot of single gifts, almost everything is shared amongst the girls. It's easier that way for me and it cuts down on the whole "she's playing with MY toy" drama.

Gabriella is starting to get into songs and loves The Itsy Bitsy Spider. She hums along and does the hand movements, it's so cute!

We use sposies at night-I have never found a good night time solution that doesn't involve a huge bubble butt! We do aio's during the day though.

Shana-I'm sorry to hear that M is still having such a hard time falling and staying asleep. Bless your soul. It takes a lot of patience for that. I hope night weaning goes smoothly and does the trick so you can get some well deserved sleep. I'm also sorry to hear that your dad is ill. You will be in my thoughts.

[egarcia76]

Shana, I'm sorry to hear about your father. Not much advice, but let him know (as I'm sure you already have) that you'll be there for him.

[Pom]

Hey Shana -

Sorry to hear about your dad. You know, I may be waay off, but he may actually be quite happy in his shell -- he may feel safe there, and may feel strong in himself if he is able to present a strong front to his family, KWIM? The best way to support someone is to give them the help they want. To be there for them is often quite enough. Bring him a favorite food, or a book, or whatever to show you are thinking of him. Hang out with him, watch TV, whatever. He's probably worrying enough in his head. Maybe that's all he can handle.

Now YOU on the other hand, will have different needs, right? If YOU need to talk about it, process it, go through the fear and grief or whatever you might be feeling at any given point -- make sure YOU find a safe place -- friends, your DH, a therapist, us, to vent it. Treat yourself gently.

Anyway, just some thoughts. I am sorry. Cancer just sucks. No way around it.

((Hugs))

[ewe+lamb]

Shana I'm so sorry about your Dad - and having this on top of all the other issues really isn't good, I agree with Pom though, both my mum and dad have survived cancer and your Dad's has been caught early, thank heavens.

Anyway big hugs to you, take care.

Welcome to the new mamas.

Freya is miserable with scarletina so will get the tree out of the basement and employ her 'help' for decorating it over the weekend - she was supposed to go to her first proper birthday today so is really disappointed - I dread what's going to happen to the tree with Kian around and climbing everything.

Have a good weekend.

[Valerie.Qc]

Shana

Ewe, I hope Freya's scarletina will be over soon!


Had a nice long strech of sleep last night! Anna slept from 9PM to about 5AM First time since... hum... last december I think It feels good!:

I was talking with my chiro about night nursing and the pressure to wean and she agreed with me that night weaning Anna was not a good thing since she's sooooooo tiny and her weight is stagnant at 16 pounds for a few months now :

I try to only give her the best nutricious food but she eats like a little bird and I refuse to force feed her (was told to strap her to her chair and not let her go until she finishes all her plate Ya! that's the right way to go with a spirited toddler... )

Anyway, I know I can trust my instinct with her and that's the most important think to remember when I faces *advices*

[wife&mommy]

Shanna - Sorry about your dad! Have you heard anything else about it?

Valerie - Such a tiny little one you have! Gavin is about 21 or 22 pounds and he eats like a horse!! Sometimes I just wish he would slow down, but then when I hear of other kids being picky I'm thankful that he eats. I can't believe they told you to strap her down and not let her go until she eats. Some kids would be there all day! That is cruel.

Well, I am sick. I don't know why or where I got it, but its here. This is the 3rd time I've been sick in the last few months!!! I am not used to being sick this often. I eat a good healthy diet most of the time but I do have a problem with soda. I think I'm really going to have to cut it out because the sugar seems to be supressing my immune system. That all I can think it would be because like I said the rest is healthy. Anyone have any thoughts on it?

[trini]

Subbing so I can come back and read later. It's been a LONG TIME since I've posted on the 7/05 thread, but looking forward to reading what ds's peers are up to!

[jeanieloz]

Shanna, so sorry about your dad, thankfully he went in for something else and it was found!!! Actually that's a pretty darned good story IMO!

How do I find time to post??? well I wait till the kids are in bed. Or eating, or dad's doing something with them.

Valerie, Yeah for the sleeping! have you tried just always having a snack cup around for her to graze all day on? My sister's kids were like that, much better at eating all day, rather than at a meal.

Rachel, maybe that pizza delivery guy had a cold bug you caught it from??? LOL do you take vitamins? I take a good dose of C every day as well as the other vitamins! Soda? hmmmmm could be... do you drink lots of water too?

Acelin has officially weaned... last three nights I've offered, and he's actually pulled my shirt back down over my breast, and says naaaaaa which is what he says to his food when he's done eating... Oh well... I can't make him, I was hoping to get thru the cold and flu season and still nurse, but it's not really up to me, right?

Well here's hoping for everyone to stay well who is, and all who is sick, or has sick kid to get better soon!
Donna

[cherubess]

Sorry I can't do a long post but DS is sick again and it is almost impossible to do a post so I really don't try anymore.

Right now he seems to be having a good moment, I think his cold has broken and he is starting to get better.

Shana I am very sorry about your dad. Like previous posters have said, luckily it has been caught early and I am praying that the outcome will be good for him.

I agree with Pom. By just being there can mean a lot to a person. Also looking after yourself is very important as well.

Hi to everyone else. Will post when DS is in good health again.

[Shanana]

Went with my dad to an appointment this morning, and the outlook appears to be good. The cancer was caught very, very early. They will not need to remove his kidney ... only the tumor. It has not spread. His prognosis is good, although he'll have to undergo frequent screening for the rest of his life, and hope it does not recur. I'm just thankful he hurt his back and got that MRI!! Incredibly lucky, as once kidney cancer spreads, the odds are extremely poor.

Just wanted to update. Thank you for all of the well wishes. I am holding together fairly well. And dd's sleep has improved somewhat, so that is a bonus too. Very tired, though, so off to bed ...

[jeanieloz]

Shana, that is good news! So his recovery after surgery will be better too, not having to remove the whole kidney!
Donna

[wife&mommy]

great news Shana!!!

[ChelseaG]

Hi all!

I had my first mw appt today and we heard the new babe's heartbeat - I so love that little whoosh whoosh whoosh sound! It was very faint and hard to find at first (I'm only 9.5 weeks) - but I am so glad we did hear it - it eases my anxiety and makes me feel better about this babe sticking around for the long haul...

Shana - I was so happy to hear the results of your dad's appt - I am thinking positive healing thoughts that he gets through this quickly and easily...I know your support will be a huge help and make a world of difference...

Sounds like a lot of you are fighting sickness (Ewe - scarletina - Yikes!) - I hope everyone gets healthy very quickly - we are still fighting a tiny bit of a bug in our house - it keeps circulating between me, rosie and dh...

We have had great success with our X-mas tree and Rosie pretty much leaving it alone - she has not tried to climb it - or pull it down - and has only taken a couple ornaments off the very bottom. She hasn't tried to open or stand on any of the pressents either - so I am happy about that...

Oh - someone was talking about star signs - Rosie was also supposed to be a Leo - but ended up coming 3 weeks early and is now a Cancer - I can see both signs in her - depending on her mood

Gotta go try to get some things done around the house before Sesame Street is over! :

[Shanana]

Chels, I am so glad you guys heard the heartbeat :!! That must have been a big relief. Only a few more weeks, and you'll be through that first trimester ... able to kick back, relax, stop feeling so nauseous and tired all the time!

Alright, I am going to let go of my anal retentive need to respond to everyone, because I have fallen too far behind. Hello to all, and I did read the posts and am thinking warm thoughts for all .

My dad has decided on surgery to remove the tumor ... probably to happen soon after the first of the year. After the surgery they will be able to better understand the risks of whether or not it has spread (for example, if the tumor erupted out of the covering around the kidney, the likelihood of it spreading is much higher). But given the size of the tumor, they believe it's probably pretty unlikely. So I am crossing my fingers and hoping for that.

Things are going fairly well here. DD's sleep has become very strange. We "night weaned", which wasn't really about weaning, since she very rarely nursed at night (just popped on and off and switched sides a whole bunch, but hardly ever brought a letdown). She was really fussy, but she was fussy even when I went in to be with her, and I desperately needed more sleep. But it was still hard to sleep with dh up and down with her for several hours every night. So I was just about to throw in the towel and see if me going in would help (even though it hadn't been helping before). I am so confused by what has been going on ... I just can't understand it. She isn't sick or teething or whatever. In the past, her gassiness would wake her frequently, but she would always go back to sleep. This staying awake for hours on end has just got me clueless :. So anyway, I made the decision last Wednesday (~10 days ago) that I would go in with her that night. And she slept though the night! For three days in a row! Then she had a couple of not so good nights (dh went in with her), and then started sleeping through the night again (I consider anything past 6 AM to be sleeping through the night ... although I'm not too happy about getting up at 6 AM ).

So. The first night she slept through is also the first night we started giving her a new homeopathic. The homeopath was out of it when we were in a week or so earlier, so dh picked it up that Wednesday, and we gave it to her (along with all the others) and she slept through the night. I don't think it was that specific remedy that did it, but I'm wondering if having all of them working together helped. Dunno.

Then, when her sleep started going downhill again after 3 pretty good nights, I took her in for a CST appointment (already scheduled). And she started sleeping through the night again (maybe about half the time).

It may all very well be coincidental, and there will never be a way for me to know. I am just glad that some of the nights are better. Last night I slept from maybe 10:30 PM to 6 AM!! I woke up a few times, but got back to sleep fairly quick. Nursed her when she woke at 6 AM, and then dh was up and down with her until he finally got her up at 8 AM. But I slept until 9:30! I feel better today than I have in a long time. Because part of the problem is that -- even on the nights she's sleeping well -- I am not. It sounds silly, but it's almost like I've become traumatized by the whole thing. It's usually really hard for me to fall asleep before midnight. Then I'll wake up in a panic around 5 AM and lay there for an hour or two, convinced that she's going to wake up any minute. Then dh gets up to get ready for work, which keeps me awake (he has to get ready in the master bathroom, otherwise he wakes dd up), and then dd will wake up 15 minutes after he leaves. So she may have slept from 8 PM to 8 AM, but I still only managed to get 5 hours of sleep! :

I am just hoping and praying that this is the beginning of a trend (her sleeping well, not me sleeping poorly ). I think it would kill me if I started to hope that she was moving towards sleeping through the night, and we backslid again. We see the homeopath again tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see what she has to say.

Other than that, all is going well. DD loves the swing we hung in the house (as do all the other kids that come over ). It works great for me, because it's right by the kitchen (our floor plan is very open ... she literally swings in front of one of the kitchen counters that looks into the eating area). So if she's crabby and whiny and I'm trying to get something done, I'll pop her in the swing, give her a couple of big pushes, and then go into the kitchen to work, coming around to push her some more every few minutes . We also feed her in it sometimes, as she isn't always a big fan of her high chair. Give her a piece of food, then swing her until she's done chewing and swallowing, then give her another .

She is still being stubborn about the talking, not saying many words or doing many signs, even though she knows how. I am not worried, though ... she can hear and understand us, and says a few words and makes a few animal noises. She is just doing it on her terms. I think there's going to be a lot of that in the coming years .

We went to a huge xmas party in our old neighborhood today. It was fun to see our old friends and neighbors and show dd off. I was wondering how she would react, because there were probably over 100 people there. It took her about 20 minutes, but once she got used to being there, she just took off and was wandering around, completely unfazed by all the noise and commotion (even though she was up early this morning and we were encroaching on her naptime). There was a little yappy dog there, and she even started doing her barking sound differently -- more high-pitched, to match the sound of the dog . She is so adaptable and friendly ... she was playing peek-a-boo over the back of a couch with a complete stranger, crouching down and then poking her head over the top and laughing and giggling, as the woman smiled and giggled with her. I dressed her in her Christmas outfit ... black velvet pants with a red ribbon and bow at the bottom of each leg, and a red sweater with sparkly buttons down the front and a black fur collar (bought on sale after xmas last year ). She was so darling, with her curls resting so prettily on the black fur. She's so beautiful she takes my breath away .

[jeanieloz]

Shana, I hope it works with the sleeping!

I've been bad about the Christmas stuff. Tree's not up, I haven't even gotten anything for the kids yet, but I'm much more of a last minute type than the plan ahead type anyway.
Basically I'm waiting on a check from my parents to buy gifts, but really don't know if they will send it or not, they usually do, but since they've retired, they seem to forget what day it is, so they may not even know that Christmas is in a week. I made them a photo calender of the boys, all photo collage, took me many hours of scouring for photos, resizing, cropping, pasting, and it came out really nice. I sure hope they like it, my In-Laws LOVED it... I sent a letter to my sister to have her see if my mom will actually display the calendar in public view... it might clash with their paintings, LOL! Not that they EVER have anyone over.

the weather has been so nice, ok well actually BEAUTIFUL the last few days, in the mid 70's during the day, and the mid 50's at night! I actually had to turn on the AC today! So we've been outside playing a lot, I was digging in the dirt today, and made a fire pit. Acelin LOVED getting into the dirt with me, and was having a blast, and then the little turkey went over to the clean clothes hanging on the line and started pulling them off! and he had grubby little hands too, and the clothes were still wet! I have to rewash a few of the things. Oh you should have seen him, he was so filthy dirty. But he got such a joy seeing that earth come up, with the shovel, and every time I put the shovel down, he kept handing it to me. He also picked up the bricks and was really trying to help in his own way!

We went to a Christmas party, I was the only one who brought the kids... I felt a little awkward, but dh and the older boys were camping, so they didn't come, nor did I have a baby sitter, and I only had the little boys. I didn't get to participate in much of the conversation trying to keep two little boys occupied... nobody would really even talk to the kids... and these are people I know from work, so it kind of bummed me out... the host (and my boss) was super with the boys though, even got Cameron his plate of food, and drink.
Y'know every time I ever went to a party I always seemed like the one watching the kids, or playing with the kids... frankly sometimes they are more entertaining than the adults! The one time I had a little breather at this party (both the boys were on the patio playing) the conversation died down and everyone was comparing their cell phone ring tunes! LOL... heck I left my cell phone at HOME, on PURPOSE... nobody was going to call me anyway!
Just weird... I dunno, I never felt out of place because of my kids, but this time I did.

Donna

[cherubess]

I got to think really quickly and type quickly before DS wakes up from his nap. DS is on the tail end of his cold now so things have alleviated some what.

We have the Christmas tree up and the ornaments are getting ransacked now and again. We have the tree in the playpen so keeping most of the tree safe from little hands is working to a degree

DS has been crying out in the night for many weeks now. On average he cries out about 2-3 times a night. He's not awake when he cries out, he's still sleeping. I think that he is dreaming and crying out so to calm him down I talk to him and this calms and quietens him down. I'm not sure whether or not he hears me and if I am indeed calming him So I am not sure whether or not to continue doing this or to let him be in his dream state. However I fear that he'll keep crying until he wakes up. I think that I'll keep talking to him when he cries out. Has anyone gone through this experience and what do you do?

You know how I mentioned that DS was clingy with DH? Well it has finally swung around to ME!!!! I'm enjoying it while it lasts. Some people might think that I'm nuts for enjoying it but they grow up and want to be independent at a blink of an eye so I'm not taking anything for granted. It only seems like a week ago that my god-daughter was this cute little toddler who loved attention. Now she is a 15 year old who knows everything and is leaving school to get a job.

Shana: fingers crossed : for your dad over here as well. Glad to read that M has been sleeping through the night for you. I too hope that this is the start of a new pattern. The Christmas outfit you described sounds absolutely gorgeous. Don't worry, DS is also a non-talker. The word he says often is "Up" with his arms raised telling us he wants to be carried. Though I know he understands quite a bit of what I am saying. His father isn't a man of many words either so I guess he gets it from him.

Donna: I used to be a last minute shopper as well until my family started growing and friends started having children. I hated the crowds of other people doing last minute christmas shopping and also spending a huge amount of money all at the one time so I learned to start Christmas shopping in October. I had to laugh at the image in my head of your nice clean washing getting pulled off the line by cute little grubby hands

Chelsea: aw the sound of the baby's heart beating ... brings much fond memories. Even though you always try to be optimistic about being pregnant, it is always a relief and then a joy to hear the galloping rhythm. Are the feelings of fatigue still around or have they subsided? I just remember feeling so tired in the first trimester that I napped during the day.

[cherubess]

This morning DS and I went to the post office and grocery store to pick up a few items.

DS held my hand and walked under his own foot power during this time.

DS walked beside me with a big grin plastered on his face. He was loving being a big boy walking besides Mama and doing what the big people do. He was so happy in the grocery store that he was swinging his free hand and singing out aloud that he caught the attention of a few ladies who smiled and chatted to him.

Gee 17 months old and getting independent. I am so amazed at his age where he is shown something once and he picks it up right away.

Oh and last night DS tried and mastered climbing up onto the couch for the first time. Now it is time to remove the remote controls to some place higher up.

[ewe+lamb]

Shana I'm so pleased that your Dad is doing well and that the diagnosis wasn't as black as it could have been also hoping that your sleeping problems are resolving themselves - but I guess it all takes time. Your dh must be an absolute star, looking after dd for the nights - my dh just snores on and on, not quite true but he needs the occasional nudge

Chels - the heartbeat how wonderful you must be , it's just fantastic it brings back all those super memories.

Freya is better thank heavens, Kian is getting better he still has a really chesty cough but I can't do the physio thing again - it's really horrible.

for Christmas I have finished three hats and two pairs of mittens and have just started my last hat for my nephews and nieces, so I'm super fast knitting to get it finished for Friday - we leave in the evening - Yippee. If I could figure out how to attach a photo on to my sig then you could see them - the hats, oh and my kids - they're really cute!!

The christmas tree is taking a real hammering - yes I eventually put it up with the kids on Sunday - that was a laugh - just wait until they get old enough to help - Kian pulls at all the decorations and we've lost a few already!! Freya keeps telling him not to and it ends up in a power struggle!!

Sleep is at the moment a fond and distant memory!! I think i must be on autopilot at the moment, dh walked in last night at 8.30pm and told me I looked awful, but then if I try to get some sleep at a decent hour and Kian doesn't feel like it, it's just not possible. Hey ho - maybe I'll get some rest on the flight to scotland!! But then I can't do that either because I know dh will sleep and I have to stay awake to make sure the kids are OK and are not kidnapped or something - I'm paranoid! Then I won't sleep in the car as my mum will be driving and I'll want to keep her company - oh and of course chat to her it seems like such a long time since I saw her.

The present nightmare is arriving too, my sis announced that she's getting my dh a ipod for christmas we've paid our flights across but it means that our resources for gifts are limited - I'll just have to say that our family is the real present !! - I have a camembert box and cheese for her dh - oh well - not to worry - but you see I do worry and it just makes me feel awful. I hate it how they highjack christmas with all these presents!

Kian is really talking so well - it's just happened over the last 4-5 days and unbelievably it's more french than english, we speak to him in english all the time but he has some activities which are obviously in french however, I am still quite surprised. If I ask him to help me, or to do something specific for the most part he does it and chatters away too, he loves trains and runs around saying toot toot the whole time, he really is an absolute blast. He runs to my chair that we sit in to nurse and pats the chair telling me he wants to nurse! , he chatters away on the phone to everyone and anyone. He loves dancing too, he's just in this too cute stage at the moment .

donna - I just laughed and laughed at the image of your ds and your beautiful clean washing - just so cute . We used to be last minute shoppers too, but with kids I just can't do it, we loved going in to the town and looking for fantastic gifts and buying them all and stopping off to have a glass of wine on the way home - but that's a fond and distant memory, the dark and cold and all the lights it was wonderful but not quite so achievable nowadays. shame about the party you went to, sometimes the kids are so much more fun!

What are you guys doing for gifts for the wee ones? We're doing scooters from us - I'm wondering if I'm just leading myself into a realm of mayhem!! , freya's getting a CD player as she loves to 'read' with her special books which have CDs with them, Kian is getting wooden solider skittles - i can see them flying across the room now and then some stocking stuff too.

I'll try and post before I'm off on Friday but if not Happy holidays gals and toddlers. May 2007 bring joy, peace and happiness to all your wonderful families.

[ewe+lamb]

Forgot to mention before that Kian's new favourite game is hiding in the laundry basket, he climbs in all by himself - which is no mean feat!! Then I go in and say that we've lost him and little toddler giggles come out of the basket whilst the lid's down and then he jumps up like a jack-in-the-box, it's just too funny!!

[Shanana]

Ah, Christmas. We decided to forgo a tree this year. Actually, that's not unusual, as we didn't have a tree for years until dh put one up last year for dd's enjoyment. I don't know why ... I loved our tree when I was growing up, think they're so pretty to look at, etc. I think it's mostly laziness . When it comes to holiday decorating (and this goes for all holidays), I figure if I have that kind of time on my hands, I'd rather spend it getting something done around the house, or reading a book, or, ahem, on MDC :. Then I read all these threads here about artificial trees having lead in them, as well as the light strands! And I don't want to expose dd to that, and I have mixed feelings about a live tree, as it supports monoculture tree farms, etc. Plus dh and I don't exchange gifts, and we're only getting dd 4 things, and a tree would look so sad with just 4 things under it. And then there's dd, and every time she's around a tree she's pulling ornaments off, etc., and it seems like a big hassle. So I just end up doing nothing. I'm sure we will have one next year, as dd will be old enough to understand what's going on. I would like to create some traditions that incorporate the solstice and not so much emphasis on xmas (we are not religious). But once again, too lazy to do anything about it (so far, anyway).

As for gifts, dh and I stopped exchanging gifts for all but birthdays (and since dd came along, even that has become sporadic -- I got a nice bouquet of flowers this year, lol). His parents don't do gifts anymore, preferring to emphasize time spent with family, etc. (although they do give us money on birthdays and xmas, which is very kind and generous). This was a bit of a shock to me when I first met dh, but I am totally on board now, as it makes life so much simpler. There are very few things I truly want or need, so I prefer consumables like wine and cheese and chocolate, or a massage gift certificate or nice dinner out, etc. So I've come to really like the minimalist approach, although of course we got some things for dd (I finally decided to get her a doll and ordered that last night, along with a doll-sized sling ... soooo cute!). My parents still give gifts, although I've succeeded somewhat in reducing the amount. So they are the only ones I have to buy for, and I kept it pretty simple and small this year.

I'm already picking gifts for dd's second birthday, though. Have you guys seen the LikeaBikes? I positively have to get one for her (or one of the cheaper knock-offs, here, here, here or here). Or maybe I can con one of the grandparents into getting it (the ILs do bend their no gift policy for dd ) What would I do without MDC? I find out about so much cool stuff here! Anyway, I think it's so neat that she'll probably be able to move from this straight to a real bike without worrying about training wheels.

I've also been thinking about making soap crayons. She loves bathtime so much, and I think she might finally be old enough to do this. As long as she doesn't try to eat them .

Donna, the photo calendar sounds beautiful. I think that is such a wonderful gift ... a gift of your time, and pictures of loved ones, and it is a useful gift as well (everyone needs a calendar!). I am so jealous of your 70 degree weather, although it hasn't been bad here in MI -- in the 50s last week and in the 40s now. Downright tropical for this time of year! Grubby hands on clean laundry was a pain I'm sure, but sounds awful cute. That would make a great photo shoot ... white sheets with dirty handprints backlit by the sun, and a grungy little toddler playing peek-a-boo amongst them.

Ange, so glad to hear ds is feeling better. Not sure about the crying out at night ... I sure wish these little ones came with an instruction manual. Glad to hear that ds's world revolves around you now . DD still seems to split her affection fairly equally between us. I'm just looking forward to the day when she becomes more cuddly. You know, my dh is a man of few words too, so maybe that is where dd gets the not talking . So cute picturing your ds walking along holding your hand. DD is just starting to let me do this ... a few weeks ago she would jerk her hand out of mine and wander off and do as she pleased :nana:.

Ewe, so glad to hear the kiddos are on the mend. I hope Kian kicks his cough soon. I think it's wonderful of you to knit gifts; it's always such a pleasure to receive something handmade. And if your sister's dh doesn't want the cheese, I will happily take it off his hands . I think giving your extended family the gift of your presence at xmas is a wonderful gift indeed! So try not to worry about the gifts. It's not like you're rich and holding out on them! I'm sorry to hear sleeping is not going well, and crossing my fingers that it improves soon. Too cool about Kian speaking in french! It's wonderful that he'll be bilingual. My dh's mother is swedish and his father is dutch, so he grew up speaking 3 languages. Until he landed in the ER and the docs wouldn't let his parents in, and he was speaking to them in a mixture of english, swedish and dutch, lol. After that, it was english only, which is kind of sad (he understands swedish quite well still, but doesn't speak it well and doesn't really know dutch at all). Hiding in the laundry basket -- that is SO unbelievably cute. It must be so hard not to laugh out loud when he's in there giggling! I hope you have a wonderful and safe trip home for the holidays!

DD has been doing some dancing as well. She holds her feet still and swings her hips from side to side, sometimes pushing her arms up into the air at the same time. It is so adorable.

We saw the homeopath yesterday, and she added in some remedies. She uses muscle testing, which basically allows dd's body to say what it needs. It is asking for a liver detox (fits in with her digestive issues), and the homeopath said it would probably make her "sick" for a week (like a cold) as her body clears stuff out. We are holding off starting it until dh is off for the holidays, since nights are so bad when dd is sick. I am dreading this like crazy, but hoping that maybe it won't be too bad. Our homeopath is wonderful but not infallible, so maybe she'll be wrong on this. That's what I keep hoping for, anyway.

Met up with some local MDC mamas today for a playgroup (we missed you Chels! I hope you're having fun in Florida ). It was a lot of fun, and always a good time to get together with like-minded mamas.

I haven't taken any pics of dd in her xmas outfit, but plan on it. Will let you guys know when they're up so you can take a look.