musings of Mother Hood

16 going on 17

The Boy will be 17 months old tomorrow and I thought it was high time for a Colt Update. I have let life and work and other whatnot get in the way of my blogging lately, but the little guy has been having a great few weeks. 

He continues to have an enviable amount of energy - running everywhere he goes and climbing everything from the couch to stairs to playground equipment. He loves music, whether it's the radio, clapping along to Mongo and endless rounds of "If You're Happy and You Know It", or just my singing. And his dancing might be the cutest thing I've ever seen.

A few weekends ago, we had company for the weekend and we decided to let out some of his energy during the Pep Rally at the mall before the South Carolina game.

 

We introduced the little guy to Big Red and taught him to call the Hogs, but - as you can see in the photo - he spent a lot of time running up and down the mall. LOTS of open space at the mall. Valerie and Louis drove down from Illinois again this year - and brought their kiddos to the game. They had a blast at the pep rally and the game, and Debra met us after the game on Saturday, too. Debra even volunteered to stay with all three kids (Val and Lou's two, Molly and Will, plus Colt) while the four of us went out for an honest-to-goodness double date Saturday night. We had a great time. And Debra - you're a saint!

At home, we keep things in a pretty regular routine which seems to work well. Colt knows when it's time to eat, when it's time to take a shower, when it's time to get his jammies on, brush his teeth, and head for bed. Weekends are a little different, but we stay in the general routine and he knows just what to do. The routine backfires sometimes - when we have to do something different or out of order. He looks around, a little nervous that he might be going to the doctor or that one of us is leaving! Poor guy. But the routine has allowed him to get comfortable "helping" with things like getting dressed and undressed, brushing his teeth, putting on his shoes and getting in and out of the car. Here he is "helping" me dump crackers on the floor...

 

Sleeping has been great - in bed around 7:30, up at 6 for a bottle and back to bed until 7. We can't seem to get him to sleep past 6 - but he does go back to sleep for a bit and has been known to sleep past 8:30 on weekends! He is his Mama's child!

We did have one little incident this weekend that interrupted our fabulous sleeping schedule and threatened the sanity of everyone in the house... Saturday night we went to Outback for dinner and he ate some dinner before we left the house, so he was kinda snacking on bread and veggies at the table with us. I had broccoli with my chicken and thought he might like some. He LOVED it. He gobbled up MOST of the broccoli on my plate and I thought nothing of it. Until about 3am. When I awoke to my poor, pitiful, gassy baby and his screaming, crying belly-ache. OH. MY. GOSH. I take it back! I am so sorry I fed you hideous, horrible, butter-soaked broccoli! I promise to never ever do that again! Nothing is worth that. I felt so terrible for the little guy - he just couldn't get comfortable. I fed him practically an entire bottle of Mylicon, patted his back, rubbed his tummy, and sang lullabies until I was annoying MYSELF. He had himself so worked up and the crying seemed to make it worse... so around 5am we decided to just let him play, let him be, and see if he would calm down. It finally worked. He plopped himself down in the corner of our bedroom with the stereo and decided to play the "How Many CDs Will Fit In The CD Player?" Game. He settled down, seemed to feel better, drank some milk and went back to bed. Around 6am. Stupid, stupid broccoli.

 

This week we attended our first Parent-Teacher Conference. For our 1 year old. I thought it was about 80/20 adorable/unnecessary, but it was good to talk with his teacher and hear some stories about things he's been doing at school. She walked us through 6 areas of child development: self-concept, emotional, social, language, physical and cognitive. He's doing really well, and though Ms. Julie gave us a few examples of words he's (allegedly) said at school - we know he's a little behind the curve in his language. We've actually never heard him say any discernible words at home, but he's been babbling a lot more clearly - if that makes sense - and pointing/waving/gesturing with a vengeance. He waves at EVERYONE we see. And when I put veggies and crackers on his tray during supper he directs me with his finger as to where he wants them. 

Ms. Julie also told us he has classic toddler tendencies to hoard (which I gather is a polite word for "steal") toys and not interact a whole lot with the other kids when he plays. We were only half joking when we explained to her that his quiet nature and lack of social interaction are probably genetic... he's a Hood. He comes by it honestly!

Oh! And I got his school pictures back last week! Jeff tells me I'm a sucker for buying these and I probably am - hell, we have so few pictures of him... And worse, I couldn't decide! They gave me five proofs, which was a bad idea. So I ordered two. One set of the generic background and one set of the cheesy, fall background that screams School Picture Day! 

 

I think they are beyond adorable. AND! Ms. Julie tells me that they do a class picture in the spring. I can hardly stand it!

If you recall, we had some challenges with our fall pictures this year. Nancy to the rescue! She brought her daughter Abby to help wrangle The Boy, and everyone agreed that he's a tricky little guy to photograph! We snapped a few good ones and I am still trying to pick a photo for our Christmas card so I won't post them all, but here's a sneak peek.

That should catch you up on all things Colt. I leave in a few days and I'll be gone through the holiday so keep my little family in your thoughts as we'll be apart for the longest we've ever been. Happy 17 months, Buddy!

Today's the Day

Those of you who have been following along know that we've gone back and forth several times about daycare. We were leaving Ms. Barbara's. Then we weren't. Still on the waiting list, but moving to an in-between place. Then we were staying at Ms. Barbara's again. The reasons for all the mind-changing are not that interesting so I'll spare you the gory details, but know this - we have had the same sweet old lady keeping Colt since he was 11. Weeks. Old. He turned 14 MONTHS old - yesterday. Let me break that down for you. 

This is who I dropped off at daycare for the first time on 2 September 2008.

 

 

And this is who I picked up after work yesterday.

 

 
*sigh*

His day-to-day little world consists of me, Jeff, and Ms. Barbara. And the other few kids (most of whom are part-time) at Ms. Barbara's house. And today. I'm taking him to real, live, sign-in/sign-out, put-your-name-on-EVERYTHING, we-have-a-posted-menu-and-schedule-and-BITING-policy DAYCARE. *breathe* I'm a little anxious about the whole thing. Obviously. We toured daycares, we picked our favorite, waited forever on the list, and now we're in. But it's really hard to know that I'm about to drop him off with a bunch of strangers (to him) - in a class called The Little Lambs (when Jeff and I kinda think he belongs in a class called The Tazmanian Devils...) - where he will be eating and sleeping and playing in a completely unfamiliar place. 

Somehow yesterday - the last day at Ms. Barbara's - wasn't as traumatic as I'd expected. But this First Day. At Big Boy Daycare. It's causing more than a little heartache. 

12 Months and Counting

We took the boy for his 1 year well-child check this morning, and - wouldn't you know it - he is a 22 lb 31 inch beautiful specimen of a boy. He is in the 30th percentile for weight, 50th for height, and his 18 inch noggin is 50th percentile. Everyone we saw this morning made comments about how much energy he has and how he is "certainly all boy!" -- we almost had to drug him to get him to sit still on the scale! He had to get some shots, but the doctor gave him an A+ and we aren't due back until 18 months. His checks always seem SO far away when I make the appointments -- December seems about the right length of time from now, but 18 MONTHS? - that is a lifetime away!

  

Things are really starting to change around here -- well, starting?, I don't remember a single year in my life that things have changed so rapidly around me. Our baby is rounding into such a little boy - and we are literally chasing after him the whole way. 

 

Mr. Colt has developed quite the independent streak. He has decided that he is no longer submitting to the torture that is getting his diaper changed and attempts to execute a crocodile death roll off the changing table every time I lay him down.  And Sunday, we were at the park and my camera battery died. I put the camera in the bag and was carrying it while Jeff and I herded Colt away from sidewalk drop-offs and delicious-looking sticks and other such toddler magnets. Colt wanted that camera bag BAD so I handed it to him. It was pretty heavy for such a little guy and it took him several minutes before he could walk, and carry it, without falling over. The bad news is that there are no pictures of this little moment -- because, umm, the camera (with its dead battery) was what was in the bag. Making it so heavy.  Trust me it was adorable.

 

 

We are making the transition from two naps to one in anticipation of The New Daycare. That's right - we've officially outgrown Ms. Barbara's. We are still on the waiting list for our first choice, but we'll be starting a new (interim) daycare on 1 August. At the new place, he'll be taking one nap instead of two -- so we're trying it out. So far it's not too traumatic. I hope he's all settled into the new nap schedule by the first of August as I'm sure there will be plenty of other changes that we don't even know enough to prepare him for... 

Somehow he knows. There's this side of the fence. And that side of the fence. And let me tell you the grass is always greener. We have half of the living room, the entire entryway and the hallway fenced into a hundredish square feet of playroom for the monkey. Jeff refers to it as the squirrel-proof bird feeder. It's only a matter of time before Colt figures out that if he puts the diaper box riiiiight next to the fence... *sigh* For now, it contains him. But he is constantly testing it for weaknesses.

 

The big 1 Year Mark* means exciting stuff like a new carseat and the introduction of whole milk**. And I know that most people start their babies on sippy cups at like 2 weeks old, but we decided not to mess with "such a good eater" -- until now. And the kid is just not wild about sippy cups. I've convinced myself that we just haven't found the right one. And yes, there are LOTS to choose from. We are slowly working our way through the entire selection of sippy cups at Walmart (and elsewhere) and have yet to find the perfect fit. Read: I am open to sippy cup advice. The sooner the better.

And speaking of good eaters, Colt has started to really enjoy his dinner. This is for you Aunt Lynn. He makes a HUGE MESS. I still have to only give him a few pieces of carrot/pasta/green bean at a time because he mistakes suppertime for some sort of let's-see-how-many-of-these-I-can-fit-in-my-cheeks contest. So we are taking a lesson in pacing ourselves, but we are getting there. He's all about using his hands to eat, but is easily distracted and so far drops more on the floor and his lap than in his mouth. Does Consumer Reports review dustbusters?

 

Yes, our boy is running full speed ahead into toddlerhood. Lately, I may as well TRY to take pictures of the back of his head as the last thing he wants to do is sit still for a bajillion pictures. He has two speeds: running/jabbering/climbing. And asleep. This kid does not wander -- he walks with purpose. His little internal compass points him in the direction of all things trouble fun.  

*Yes, Colt is aware that it has been 19 days since his birthday. If you have not yet received a Thank You note, please know that you have not been forgotten. I've been on his case about getting those sent. He promises to finish them this week.

**For the record, Walmart does a LOUSY job of labeling/displaying/organizing their milk case. Last  week, I stood there for eternity reading every single label in order to determine where the hell they were hiding the whole milk. I called everyone I could think of to ask - and left a bunch of rambling voicemails about the conspiracy of milk labels. 1%? 2%? Skim? Soy? Rice? Chocolate? Freaking WHOLE! I finally determined that since what they had labeled as "Vitamin D" didn't have any other "%" communication -- that I had found the closest thing to whole milk offered in the store. Done. Whatever. Milk should not be that hard.

With a Little Help From My Friends

You really came through for me. Thanks for all the encouraging and helpful words of advice. We're not any closer to deciding on a daycare - yet! - but I am feeling more confident that we're capable of it. When I was pregnant, we use to remind ourselves that "people have babies every day" and that "if millions of people do it every day then so can we!" Perhaps not the best source of confidence, but it worked at the time.

So I'm breathing. And repeating to myself that we don't have to make a decision today. And we'll find a daycare. And it won't be perfect because nothing is. But it will be the right place for Colt. And us.

I know this sounds stupid but I think this is the first "real decision" we've had to make so far for Colt. I had a healthy pregnancy and pleasant birth so we didn't have to make any hard medical decisions, our current nanny all but fell in our laps and has been a great situation so far, we love our pediatrician, Colt eats and sleeps and gains weight well -- and I'm beginning to think we have run out of dumb luck. Time to start thinking a little. Bleh.

We wouldn't even move him yet, but he's the oldest baby at Ms. Barbara's - and the only one crawling and cruising around. He doesn't have any peers and, honestly, I think he's starting to wear her out! So we're hoping to find a place that he can go for daycare and be able to stay for preschool. We'll see. Tour #2 is next week. I'll let you know how it goes.

 P.S. Happy Birthday to Grandma Martin! And happy belated birthday to Crazy Aunt Laura! We love you!

Reading, 'Riting, and... Running Scared!

Jeff and I toured our first preschool today. And we have NO idea what we're doing. Is every single stage of parenthood going to feel like this?

I know it's only the first one we've seen, but I really felt like I knew enough about snacks and naps and the alphabet to easily feel confident in our choice of preschools. Wrong! I feel like I know less now than before we took the tour! Who knew there was so much involved in a freaking preschool? We have another tour scheduled next week at a different school, and after today we both feel like we'll have a much better handle on things after we have two under our belts and we'll be able to compare -- let's hope so! I mean, we really shouldn't be making a preschool decision while our entire database of preschool information revolves around one one-hour tour to one preschool, right? *sigh*

Help! Bring on the advice! Let's hear it! Not advice on which preschool to choose necessarily, rather on how to choose. Open forum starts..... now!