June Thread for December babies

I hear you....our desk/computer area is utterly unbabyproofable. I don't know what we're going to do with it. It's a very open mission style desk, so everything cordy is exposed. Ugh. Our couch is okay, the coffee table's not too bad and the tall wooden cabinet just needs to be fastened to the wall. The kitchen? Eh...it's not too bad, I guess. Pocket door to the basement and one between the kitchen and living areas, which are nice for closing off areas. I guess it won't be too long before we need a baby gate for the stairs to the second floor, though.

He's not actually crawling, by any stretch...but he sure is scooting everywhere. He's been such a pistol since we got home from Texas. I don't think, actually, that it has anything to do with his surgery. I think he's just ready to GO GO GO and can't. Every second that he is awake but not on the move with us, he's yelling. It's not too fun. Poor babe....he doesn't mean to be a pain. And, then, I feel all bad for being irritated at him.

Shanon's playing with him right now....but it's nursing time. Gotta run.

Hi mamas,

I missed out on all the end of May fun, including a crawling Wyatt. How exciting!!

Nannymom- I started solids with dd for selfish reasons. It was getting impossible to have dinner anymore, so I just decided she would eat with us. It's still challenging to eat, but she's enjoying herself a bit more now. DD only eats solids at one meal each day now. I chose dinner since it's our big family meal and I was selfishly hoping that by eating some cereal she might wake up to nurse less at night. Well, that didn't work! I don't give her solids every day, and it doesn't seem to bother her if we skip them. I think she likes milk better. I don't think there's a right or wrong answer on this one now that our DC are about 6 months, but I can totally understand why the mamas of children with allergies would hold off. I would too if I thought that were an issue. There's no way dd is going to get any wheat, dairy, eggs or soy before she's at least 1 year, maybe 2 with wheat and dairy.

oh mamas, we went to a wedding over the long weekend. We stopped the night on the way there and back at my SILs house. It's so sad for me. She has a dd 2 months younger than Evangeline. when we got there Friday, SIL's baby had just had 3 vax shots and was miserable because she also had an ear infection! Some family was there and they commented how E must have had her shots recently too. Normally I don't comment because I don't want my choices to sound like a judgement on SIL, but DH said "no, she hasn't yet" so I gave this story about how our doc likes to wait and spread them out and had to finish with "but of course you can't do that if your baby is going to daycare." for SIL's sake. Well then on the way back through on Monday, SIL was preparing to send her 4 month old baby to full time daycare. I just don't get it. With her son, she waited till he was 6 months. Before he went for a full day, she had him go part time for 2 weeks to get used to it. With this one, at 4 months she's just dropping her off for a full day without time to adjust. The worst part is that she doesn't have to do this. My MIL would gladly stay and take care of the baby for another month or 2. I don't get why she's doing this. I know daycare is a necessity for many mamas, but given that she has choices about how she does this, the way she's chosen feels really mean to me.

Hiya mommas. Glad to hear the haps. Wyatt is crawling...wow! Nice to hear that teeths are appearing too- I guess it's by by beautiful gummy smiles.

As far as Aunt Flo goes- I know that I have had a couple spates of light bleeding but not on any regular schedule. As far as I know anything goes when breastfeeding so i wouldnt feel that youhave to be ready for a monthly visit. I just had some flow this week and the last time was over 2 months ago. But, we canprobably all be knocked up again now so watch out!

I was just listening to the GD do Broken Arrow and dancing with my sonshine. Hearing Phill sing "There you go, turning my whole world around"! I find myself from time to time falling more in love with DS in these moments of clarity, looking at eachother with all these emotions in our eyes. I can actually FEEL the love grow in my soul. What a fantastic experience!

Meanwhile, Owen's skin is looking WAY WAY BETTER :LOL
I cant even describe what a relief it is to see some of the things I am doing finally make a difference! who cares about eating good food, anyways

Good day to you all- we are off to the mom and babies group.

Things are great here with us right now. My mom moved out in April and has been renting a little cottage in the neigbhorhood, but that will soon end because we just got a bid accepted on a much bigger house (with a half-acre lot!) that has a M-I-L unit in our same fabulous neighborhood! We're thrilled but anxious about selling the house we're in, of course, although my realtor is VERY encouraging and optimistic.

Eivind's first tooth finally cut through today--it was so sweet to see the little white bud!

We've also been going to the local "birth-to-three" group for a couple of meetings. VERY interesting--my first exposure to folks doing "manistream" parenting. Luckily there are 3 other families I already know who are much more my kind of attitude--all of us kinda ganged up on the folks saying "but my baby LOVES to watch tv" and quoted the new APA findings on how evil tv is for baby brain development. It was good not to be the only one on that side of the argument!

This is the last week of my quarter--next week is finals week, and then we're heading out to New Mexico for Eivind's first trip on a plane so he can meet his grandpa, step-grandma and great-grandma!

Happy June to all of you!!

Happy June, everybody! It's finally summer here, so this morning EnviroDaddy decided to dress EnviroBaby for the first time in the cute outfit w/embroidered monkeys that we received at the baby shower. Turns out the shorts are already too small! They say "6-12 months" but we think they're designed to fit over supertrim sposie diapers...or maybe they're for fashionably anorexic babies...ours is not esp. chubby but got red marks on his waist and thighs from the elastic.

Our car is in the shop for the 6th time in 6 months :, but everything else is going well. I'm amazed at how we manage to keep the house up to a semi-reasonable hygienic standard! The clutter is worse than it used to be, but it's not raging entirely out of control.

EnviroBaby is looking very interested in our food. Often he wants to sit in my lap while I'm eating so he can observe intently. We have a bunch of bananas, and I'm considering offering him a little dab when they get nice and ripe. He's been chomping things and drooling as if he's teething for weeks now, but the teeth still haven't broken thru. I hope they wait until he gets over his current habit of twisting his head while nursing!!!

He does lots of rolling and rotating (turning so his head is where his feet were) and seems to be content w/those means of locomotion for now--he's suspended the project of getting his knees under him. The other night he fell out of bed at 3 a.m.! He was very upset but not hurt. The bed is only ~18 inches high. We decided to put a thin foam exercise pad over the hardwood floor next to the bed.

Starting to think about childproofing, I pointed out to my oblivious partner that perhaps a broken typewriter table discarded by Duquesne University is not the best choice of nursery furniture! What I mean by oblivious is that after looking at the table for a moment, he said, "Why?" Well, because it weighs 30 pounds and the missing foot is replaced w/folded paper and it has steel pinchy things hanging from the underside!!! Also, it has a history of viciousness: It once gave my leg a bruise bigger than my hand! The only reason it's in the nursery is to hold some plants which can now go onto the porch for the summer; if we get rid of the table now, we'll manage to find something for the plants next fall, I'm sure. Is anybody else a sucker for free furniture? We have a lot of things we would never have chosen if we'd had to pay for them....

During our trip last weekend, we attended an event hosted by a Klingon who was standing at the front of a room w/the audience seated in rows of chairs. I dragged a chair far over to one side so EnviroBaby and I could leave unobtrusively if necessary and so he could see without being held up above lap height. I noticed that when the Klingon was speaking, he'd look at him, but whenever the audience applauded, cheered, yelled "Forty-two!", or whatever, he'd look over at them. He was very attentive for over an hour!

I've also noticed lately that when somebody waves to him, he lifts his hand. He looks sort of confused and tentative, like, "Is this right?" I'm trying to remember to do Baby Signs, because he's clearly just about to catch on!

I'm pretty sick right now so bear with me. Fever and pretty darned bad body-aches. If this is what my DS had the last couple of days (with an ear infection on top of it!) than I totally have sympathy for him and am no longer at all irritable about the lack of sleep those nights.

Naomi seems to enjoy the new, warmer, more cuddly me. Except that I keep not moving. BORING! She likes to be out and about a lot. But she also won't eat or sleep very well when we're out. If she had it her way, we'd go watch kids and animals at the park for two hours, come home, nap and eat and cuddle for an hour...repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Bathe, sleep. Repeat steps 1-10.

Naomi likes: the Johnny-Jump-Up (for short periods of time). Watching the big kids. Playing in the water. Any water. Even my glass of water.

Naomi dislikes: waking up before she's done sleeping (GRUMP!). Sitting on mommy's lap at the computer. Having to pay attention to boring things like eating and sleeping while there's STUFF going on. Playing on her belly. Trying to do something and failing (ooooh does she ever get MAD!).

Question:

Do you give your baby water at all?

It's so hot out and I keep thinking that hot milk wouldn't be so refreshing in 95 degree weather. I gave Cole a sip out of my glass the ther day at the park because we were both so hot. Slinging+south texas summer time outdoors= HOT. You think this is ok? I don't really know how this plays in with ecoBF. Is it ok once in a while? I know it's not literally going to hurt anything. He seems totally addicted to my cup now, grabbing whatever I have in my hand. I hate having to wrestle it away from him everytime and have him start screaming. He REALLY likes cold water. He actually spits most of it out and sort of *thinks* abot how it feels in his mouth.

I have one of those baby food mesh things. I am thinking about starting to put fruits in it at 8 months or so. He would enjoy that tasting but not yet eating thing. He loves to chew on his sippy cup, although, he's never had anything in it. I just give it to him empty to bite on and practice holding. He doesn't know there is the option of putting something in it yet and doesn't care.

Jessica-I'm sorry you're having such a hard time. Max is so lucky to have a Mom as commited as you.

M-H-L-I do give Iris water in an Advent sippy cup, but it's more for fun and "practice" I also step up my water intakeon really hot days.

Nikijr-hang in there. I was so sick a few weeks ago I thought I would never get better and Iris decided she loved whatever the fever was doing to my milk.

Inspired by Nikijr's post:
Iris likes-sleeping late,nursing (she has started makeing a monkey sound when she sees the boobs , snuggleing, going for walks, "playing" with the kids at work, and looking at books
Iris dislikes-napping alone, being put down, riding in the car, to name a few.

The big news here is that tommarow dh and I are going out to lunch alone It is only for one hour and just to a burrito joint but the point is it's happening! I have never left her ever. gulp.