~* June 2007 Moms * September *~ - Page 4

[PatchChild]

Go Evan!!!!! It's so much fun to watch them when they first figure it out. Owen was so pleased with himself when he first learned. He'd grin ear to ear and giggle when he was walking and you could tell it was out of sheer joy.

Count Owen in with the crazy climbers. He spent 20 minutes straight yesterday learning to climb onto and off of the chair in his room. Then another 20 minutes on our basement stairs. Up 3 steps, down one, up two, down four, sit and look, up two more.... He has a toy garage thing that he climbs up on and stands at the top of, reaching his hands way up and saying "wheeeee!" Earlier this week he was working on climbing in and out of the laundry basked. Good game, except it really is a little too tall for him and about every other time it would tip up and hit him in the head. Does this teach him to stop? Heck no! Just means it's time to try again.

I can't believe how totally melted I am now that Owen is starting to use some words. I'm whipped! I'll do anything at all as long as he says mumma mumma. I know this will pass, but it's fantastic! He'll say dada, mumma, dog, go, yeah, no, and wheee. So cute!!

[herbmama3-7]

I am a little worried about Jolies vocabulary. She says only a couple of words, mama, and dada, uh-oh. Thats it, the rest of the time she is babbling jibberish, squeals and seems to have no interest in repeating words or trying. When I prompt her to repeat back to me she just looks at me like I am nuts.
When Noah was this age he was saying things like "happy Thanksgiving" and "help please", ever so clearly, I am a little taken back by my non-talker.

Should I be worried, or am I being silly?

[Jilian]

OMG - Happy thanksgiving at this age? That is impressive! I wouldn't be worried at all. As long as she has a few words she's on track. DS1 barely had any words until after 18 mos then had a language explosion. Evan has maybe 10 words or so and doesn't always say them. He's big into the baby jibberish too.

[wombatclay]

Herbmama- I feel your pain DD1 is gifted and as our eldest this means that dh and I have a very skewed impression of "normal ages/stages". Ro is a perfectly normal, happy, on track kiddo but because she isn't as "rush ahead" as DD1 it all feels a bit delayed.

Though in just the last week, the Cylons have activated Ro. Seriously. In just the last few days she has done so many things she'd never done before that it's getting ridiculous. I think that the charts say that during the "language explosion" period (starting around 18mo) they often learn 9 or more words a day so I bet we should all be enjoying the (relative) quiet since it pobably wont last much longer!

[momtokay]

Uh speaking of climbing, Lulu climbed out of her crib last night. We do have one more time we can lower the matress and will do that before bedtime tonight, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time before she can climb out of with that setting too. She's a determined little girl. At any rate, if you're not co-sleeping -- which isn't really an option with DD3 -- where does your little one sleep? We put DD2 -- who was an even crazier climber -- into a toddler bed at 15-mos and while I wouldn't have even considered doing the same for DD3, now that she's climbing out of the crib, I'm considering it. Or might it be safer to put her on a aerobed on the floor? We have a queen size one that would give her lots of room for rolling and it would only be about a 2" drop if she rolled out of it, but I don't want to put her in any danger, yk?

As for words, I think they are looking for something like 10 words at 18-mos. Lucy had about 25 words shortly before her first birthday and her ped said she was very advanced in that area. My first only had a handful of words at 18-mos, and by 19-mos she was speaking in full sentences clearly enough for strangers to understand her. FWIW, being a late talker wasn't the sign of any delay for DD1. These days I would say she's actually quite advanced. She reads well above grade level and was in the 3rd-6th grade class as a 7yo last year. I wouldn't worry about a 14/15 month old with only a few words. Also, FWIW, neither of my first two were ever interested in repeating sounds/words that I said.

[wombatclay]

I bet the "on floor" sleep surface would be great as long as you could keep the area around it safe too. It's very in line with Montessori ideas actually.

[Keeping up]

Climbing - yikes. We are still in a crib. I would imagine he will move into a bed closer to his 2nd birthday. We had bunk beds (until Seanie started climbing the ladder) and so the 2 year old has a full size bed with complete built-in bed rails. It is like a toddler bed at Pottery Barn but full size - I love it. Seanie will get that bed in the new year.

Words - I am a really laid-back momma (with four kiddos) so don't even notice Seanie doesn't say one word, not even momma. He babbles a ton and grunts to get stuff. He understands everything we say - it is amazing. (Seanie go downstairs, Seanie lay down, Seanie do you want dinner, Sean where is Kate, Seanie get your toy, Seanie share with your brother etc - he gets it all.) I am not at all worried about his lack of vocabulary. His 2 year old brother is incredible with his language skills but his 4 year old brother barely spoke at 2 years old. The 4 year old now reads basic beginner readers and loves phonics/sounds etc - he is well ahead of his peers. I have also heard that comprehension is the big issue rather than vocabulary. Thus - not even on my radar screen.

[Mrs.aLifeofReilly]

herbmama - DS has a a lot of words that he has learned and can say...he just doesn't use them very much. He'll learn a word and will use it constantly for a week or two, and then he moves on to another word and seems to forget that he has others he can use. His only constant words are Dada, Woof (for dog), "this is", and hi. He doesn't even say Mama yet. I agree with AnnD that DS understands most of what we say, he just chooses not to use the words he knows for whatever reason.

[herbmama3-7]

Gosh gals, your all so realistic, thanks for easing my silly mommy worry.

And now that you mention it, Jolie knows everything we are saying, she just chooses not to say "it" back.

[BarefootScientist]

Sleep - DS starts his night out on a twin mattress next to our bed. We haven't had any problems with him getting into trouble, because everything is pretty much babyproofed, and also if he wakes up he just goes "EH! EH!" until we go get him, and if we don't come, he comes looking for us. He comes into our bed at night, but I have no idea when. Even though I lift him into our bed. I usually have no memory of doing so in the morning.

Words - I was a little worried about DS's vocabulary, but then I sat down and really thought and made a list of all the things he says, and I realized that he actually has about 9-18 words, depending on what you count as a word. His first word was tent (I make a little tent over our heads with blankets and Daddy has to find us). He also says daddy, mama, hat, hot, bopbop (boppy), un (done with sort of the all-done sign), sort of says nana and shakes his head no, waves bye-bye/hi, points at stuff and says "what's this", and makes a monkey sound and chicken sound in reference to those animals, and an "ahh" sound for water bottles and cups (like he just finished drinking). He also makes the potty sign when he has to go (sometimes) and repeats "end" at the end of books and "amem" after prayers. So a lot of those might not actually count as words, but I think it shows that he is on the right track, and you can tell that he understands most of what we say. I bet if you sit down and think of the things Jolie says or does that shows she "has" words even if she doesn't say ACTUAL words you will realize she's fine too.

DS is finally starting to use walking as actual transportation! : He already climbs, walks up stairs with help, and gets up to standing by himself without holding on to anything, but he has been really cautious with walking alone.

[wombatclay]

Yay!

This age is one of my favorites... it's like you can actually see the connections being made. :

[willoLevin]

Driving so far to school is still kicking my butt.

I fought tooth & nail (bent back and broke all my nails!) yesterday and got three car seats installed across in my compact hatchback's rear seat. Now I can carpool! Yay!

Of course, the first thing I've done is volunteered to drive someone else's kid tomorrow morning, so I haven't helped myself any, but it'll save someone some gas. (I also have to find other drivers who are willing to meet my generally higher standards for safety--I don't feel a booster seat is sufficient protection for my 4 yo while there are still harnessed seats that easily accommodate him. Sigh.)

A. is doing well. Words. Hmm... He says "mama" and calls his brother "ma'am" and asks for "mum mum" when he wants food, but they sound different to me. He says "BOOM" when he drops/pounds things and he started saying "ba" for ball yesterday.

The picky/light eater thing is wearing on me. What's funny is, I'm totally fine with him eating just as much as he thinks he needs as long as he stays on his growth curve. It's DH and my in-laws. Ugh! If I see another person try stuffing anything else in A.'s face I'll just scream. And I'm going crazy with MIL, who still starts feeding my FOUR y.o. if he slows down moving his spoon, because A. simply WILL. NOT. BE. FED.!!! If you give him a plate with lots of foods just like everyone else has, he'll pick through it and get enough. He's fine. But he just screams and pushes with his hands and is so upset when people shovel at him, and she WON'T. STOP. SHOVELING.!!!
:

But, really, we're good. I'm just so busy with all the wretched driving.

The first lead abatement contractor comes tomorrow morning to tell me how many zillions of dollars it will cost to make my home safe for my children. God help me. And my vacuum cleaner seems to be broken so he'll think I never vacuum up (with my HEPA vacuum only!) the paint chips that do fall. (I care too much about what people think. I know.)



And I think my thyroid has definitely sloooooowed down. I'm yearning for sugar/caffeine in a crazy way and so freakin' tired in the afternoon. Oof. Next blood test is Monday. I need to see my acupuncturist.

--willo

[momtokay]

Okay, it's my turn to need some advice or reassurance. I pulled out all of our 12-18 mos size fall stuff and most of it is too big on Lucy. She's very petite (~18.5-lbs and ~30") and while that generally doesn't bother me one bit, I'm feeling somewhat concerned about it today. Even with her cloth diapers she can't hold up most of the pants. She doesn't look skinny to me, though I will admit she does look skinnier than most other toddlers we see. She was my biggest baby at birth and has only put on around 10-lbs in the 15-months since then. She often eats more than my 5yo, has hit all her milestones just fine, is very active (see my post above about her climbing out of her crib), and seems healthy (well she has a cold right now, but in general seems healthy). I guess having the clothes all be big on her really drove home the fact that she's pretty small for a 15-month old. Anyone BTDT or have any stories/links to help me relax?!? Or is this something I should be concerned about?

TIA!!

[galincognito]

momtokay- my dd is the same; she`s about 19 lbs and probably 31 inches (haven`t measured in a while). she still fits 6-12 month clothes easily. but she`s healthy, active, and hitting all her milestones (although she doesn`t talk AT ALL, just makes noises; not even mama or dada). i`m not worried about it because she`s happy and seems to be moving along just fine. i don`t know, maybe i`m too relaxed about things sometimes!

[wombatclay]

Hugs... since she is happy and is hitting milestones at a steady pace and having a good time, I wouldn't worry too much. But I know the feeling. Ro is wearing 6-9mo clothes right now and they don't look all that "tight". The pants are a bit "ankle" length and the shirt does have a small belly gap when she wiggles, but nothing that would make you say "great gods woman that child needs new clothes!".

Ro was 9lbs 5oz at birth and is still just barely 20lbs (she got all the way up to 21lbs but then started walking). I added a probiotic and some flax oil to her diet and I'm considering adding a vitamin soon since she is a bit pickier than her sister in terms of food but overall I'm just trying to stay zen. Did you know there is a "thin baby/tiny toddler/petite child" tribe? I'll see if I can find a link...

[momtokay]

Originally Posted by galincognito

momtokay- my dd is the same; she`s about 19 lbs and probably 31 inches (haven`t measured in a while). she still fits 6-12 month clothes easily.

Well I'm glad Lulu's not the only one. Thanks!! I wish I hadn't passed along most of the cold weather 6-12 mos size stuff at the beginning of summer though. Oops!!

Originally Posted by wombatclay

Did you know there is a "thin baby/tiny toddler/petite child" tribe? I'll see if I can find a link...

Thanks for the reassurance. And you know, I had totally forgotten about that. I think I posted there years ago about my oldest, who is now a 46 lbs 8-year old and was a very petite toddler though not quite as petite as Lucy.

[puddle]

L isn't much bigger--30" tall and 19 lbs 13 oz. At our LLL meetings, there are always 6 month old babies much bigger than she is.

[wombatclay]

It's so funny (to me) since dd1 was a huge babe and always off the top of the charts for height/weight. I think she wore 6-9mo for about 3 weeks, and she was over 20lbs at 6mo.

So maybe the universe is just balancing things out? DD1 skipped the 6-9mo wardrobe so DD2 spends twice as long there as "normal"?

[Jilian]

MomtoKay, Evan is still really small too. He's somewhere in the high 17 lbs to low 18 lb range. We actually gave in and started pediasure 2 weeks ago and it seems like he's gained since then. Pediasure has more sugar than I'd like so I do half pediasure and half coconut milk. I call it a "baby colada" He likes it. He does look skinny and it makes me sad. When he lays down I can see all of his ribs. His little legs are so thin. Yet he eats constantly and still nurses pretty frequently.

[momtokay]

Originally Posted by Jilian

MomtoKay, Evan is still really small too. He's somewhere in the high 17 lbs to low 18 lb range. We actually gave in and started pediasure 2 weeks ago and it seems like he's gained since then. Pediasure has more sugar than I'd like so I do half pediasure and half coconut milk. I call it a "baby colada" He likes it. He does look skinny and it makes me sad. When he lays down I can see all of his ribs. His little legs are so thin. Yet he eats constantly and still nurses pretty frequently.

Thanks for the idea!! FWIW, from the pictures I've seen he doesn't look that thin to me. Maybe my view of toddlers is just warped by looking at a skinny 8year old all day?!? I can also see Lulu's ribs and her arms are teeny. Hmmm . . .

Thanks everyone!! After reading about all the 25-lb six month olds I'm glad to hear of other under 20-lb, 15-month olds!!! I am already feeling better.