 |
| A letter from the Easter Bunny. |
 |
| Jackpot! |
 |
| Best Easter photo of the two of them. Note to self: Next year do sibling photos before the egg hunt. |
Showing posts with label milestones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label milestones. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
The Age of Not Believing
Well, we made it seven years. This past weekend, over Easter, The Bean's skepticism and questioning couldn't be ignored any longer. Half of me wanted to be the one to tell him. To control that dissemination of information. The other half of me is glad that Jen did the explaining. It's a bit sad, knowing that he knows. Of course, once the truth about the Easter Bunny was out, Santa and the Tooth Fairy were quickly revealed. We have asked, and hope, that he preserves the secret... helping to create magic for the little ones who do still believe. The oldest in his grade and among his cousins. We'll see if he is up to the task.
Saturday, August 26, 2017
The Bean is Six and Half!
Today The Bean is six and a half... actually, that's not entirely true. It's been a little over a month since he reached that "milestone" age, but summer equals busy and I'm only just now finding the time to sit down and write his update. Don't worry folks, we'll pay for his therapy.
This may sound a bit funny, but he seems to be speaking in a more mature way lately. I think a lot has to do with all the reading he does, because he has been trying out new words and phrases fairly regularly. Sometimes he gets them in the right context, other times not so much. It catches me off guard. I guess it's just not something I really expect. It is pretty neat to see him try to figure out. It also surprises me in that I would definitely hesitate to try out a new word with other people, but he is so willing to take the risk. I'm not sure if that's personality, something that has been fostered, or what.
While he can be shy at times, particularly around new people, overall he is outgoing and confident. He's still on the small side, but rarely hesitates to approach older kids and ask them if he can join in. He wears his heart on his sleeve and you can see his shoulders slump when he is rejected. Occasionally he needs reminders of how it makes him feel to be told he's "too small," but overall he does well with younger kids too. He adores babies.
He LOVES be outside. I think he would live outside if we let him. He and I did a "Nature Nuts" program at the Brickworks over the winter. I didn't think it was very well organized, but he loved getting out on adventures. He hikes, runs, bikes, scoots, skateboards, skates, climbs, swims... The summer has been pretty fabulous for all of that. Second to being active, he probably enjoys reading the most. Okay. Not entirely true. iPad or other tablets might rank as #2, or maybe even #1, but they're almost exclusively reserved for short periods over the weekends. He also really likes TV. But again: his access is limited. He's become a lot more interested in playing games. Uno and Old Maid have been in high rotation this summer. He's very competitive.
We have been so busy over the past few months. The end of the school year was a whirlwind with lessons, and playing at the park after school and visiting friends, but the summer has also been busy. We've taken a break from all scheduled programs, but will likely go back to piano, swimming and gymnastics in the fall. The Bean wants to do everything. Jen and I have talked about putting him in dance or acting, because he seems to enjoy both, but he's been talking more about learning to play drums and basketball. I think our neighbours might find a way of getting us evicted if we bought him a drum set, and we'll see what happens with the basketball...
On top of being active, he's also pretty fearless. He has no reservations about climbing to the top of the tallest trees and jumping from their branches back down to the ground. He loves to go fast. He got to ride go carts for the first time this summer and thought they were pretty much the best thing ever along with the roller coasters he was able to ride on at various amusement parks. I can totally see him getting into some sort of extreme sport.
Health wise he's been good. I'm not sure if I ever mentioned what we found out about his belly issues. The gastroenterologist we've been going to hasn't been super helpful. After reading some research, we decided to take him off Restorolax, and if anything I'd say we've seen a positive improvement both with his digestive issues and with his temperament. We tried to have him tested for Celiac, but it turns out he actually lacks the protein that is used to check for it. Then, again after doing some research, I found out that the vast majority of people who lack this protein are allergic to dairy, which we strongly suspect is The Bean's #1 issue. Anyway, we may have him tested for other allergies, but it's not a huge priority right now as things mostly seem to be under control.
His teeth have been an ongoing issue. He lost his first tooth in the spring, which was pretty exciting with the tooth fairy coming to visit and all. His second tooth fell out shortly after. We were happy that they came out as the new ones were already growing in behind the baby teeth. The top two were wobbly for a while and both fell out, again within days of each other, at the end of the school year. Meanwhile his six year molars erupted and when we went for a dentist appointment last month they were already showing signs of decay. The dentist assured us that we're doing a good job looking after his teeth, but that probably because of deficiencies or an illness during their developmen, he has what appears to be very weak enamel and is prone to cavities. Poor kid. He got his eighth filling shortly after that appointment.
He eats well. He seems to like what he likes, and NOT like what he doesn't like. He isn't super into trying new foods, and often will say "Yuck!" before it's even touched his tongue, only to say after another few seconds that actually he does like it. Lately he's been eating a ton which makes me suspect he's about to have another growth spurt. He would be happy to survive on carbs and ketchup.
He's currently about 44/45 inches tall and about 44/45lbs. We just got him new running shoes for school and they are a size 13. They're just a smidge big, but I'm hoping they will last into the new year. In clothing he's anywhere between a 4 and a 6, but leaning towards the larger sizes. Bottoms are generally smaller so they don't fall off his tiny waist. If he had his way he would be either in underwear or pajamas 24/7.
We've been a bit off of our schedule, but generally speaking he goes to bed between 7:30 and 8:30pm and sleeps to about 6:30-7:30am. There were a few days earlier in the summer that he slept until after 9am. It was amazing!
I'm not really looking forward to getting us all back on a schedule for the start of the school year. The Bean is excited that he is going to be in Grade One. I feel like he's ready. Like I've said before, his reading is amazing. His comprehension is just a little behind his reading abilities, but still far beyond what would be expected at his age. His math abilities are average. Science and Social Sciences are probably average too. Gross motor skills are awesome and fine motor are probably right on track. He's able to reflect on his actions and does a pretty decent job with self-regulation, for the most part. I am slightly concerned about how influenced he can be by others, and hope that he'll behave appropriately (meaning with respect for others and with kindness). He's got a strong personality and is very sweet, but he also wants to fit in with the crowd, make people laugh, and get lots of attention.
A story: Back in April he and Sprout had been out drawing on the sidewalk with chalk. He had spent a long time working on the characters from P.J. Masks and Sprout, not really paying attention, drew over some of his work. He was so upset. He grabbed a white chalk and drew a big square around "his" area and went over to Sprout and said, "Sprout, do not draw in my area!" Later on I told him that I was impressed at how he handled the situation, knowing that he had been pretty upset. To which he says to me, "Self-Regulation, Mama." (He's also been known to coach me into taking a breath when I'm losing my temper with them.) Overall I'd say he's a pretty fantastic brother.
And on that note I am going to wrap this very overdue update up. I'm pretty sure this sweet child will be empathetic when he reads these later on and sees how behind I was. He keeps us on our toes and is such a great kid.
What an interesting age this is. The Bean certainly isn't a "little kid" anymore, but he's not quite a "big kid" either. While he very much wants to be a part of grown up conversations and have all kinds of independence, he still loves to pretend play with his sister, is afraid of being alone, and loves getting snuggles.
This may sound a bit funny, but he seems to be speaking in a more mature way lately. I think a lot has to do with all the reading he does, because he has been trying out new words and phrases fairly regularly. Sometimes he gets them in the right context, other times not so much. It catches me off guard. I guess it's just not something I really expect. It is pretty neat to see him try to figure out. It also surprises me in that I would definitely hesitate to try out a new word with other people, but he is so willing to take the risk. I'm not sure if that's personality, something that has been fostered, or what.
While he can be shy at times, particularly around new people, overall he is outgoing and confident. He's still on the small side, but rarely hesitates to approach older kids and ask them if he can join in. He wears his heart on his sleeve and you can see his shoulders slump when he is rejected. Occasionally he needs reminders of how it makes him feel to be told he's "too small," but overall he does well with younger kids too. He adores babies.
He LOVES be outside. I think he would live outside if we let him. He and I did a "Nature Nuts" program at the Brickworks over the winter. I didn't think it was very well organized, but he loved getting out on adventures. He hikes, runs, bikes, scoots, skateboards, skates, climbs, swims... The summer has been pretty fabulous for all of that. Second to being active, he probably enjoys reading the most. Okay. Not entirely true. iPad or other tablets might rank as #2, or maybe even #1, but they're almost exclusively reserved for short periods over the weekends. He also really likes TV. But again: his access is limited. He's become a lot more interested in playing games. Uno and Old Maid have been in high rotation this summer. He's very competitive.
We have been so busy over the past few months. The end of the school year was a whirlwind with lessons, and playing at the park after school and visiting friends, but the summer has also been busy. We've taken a break from all scheduled programs, but will likely go back to piano, swimming and gymnastics in the fall. The Bean wants to do everything. Jen and I have talked about putting him in dance or acting, because he seems to enjoy both, but he's been talking more about learning to play drums and basketball. I think our neighbours might find a way of getting us evicted if we bought him a drum set, and we'll see what happens with the basketball...
On top of being active, he's also pretty fearless. He has no reservations about climbing to the top of the tallest trees and jumping from their branches back down to the ground. He loves to go fast. He got to ride go carts for the first time this summer and thought they were pretty much the best thing ever along with the roller coasters he was able to ride on at various amusement parks. I can totally see him getting into some sort of extreme sport.
Health wise he's been good. I'm not sure if I ever mentioned what we found out about his belly issues. The gastroenterologist we've been going to hasn't been super helpful. After reading some research, we decided to take him off Restorolax, and if anything I'd say we've seen a positive improvement both with his digestive issues and with his temperament. We tried to have him tested for Celiac, but it turns out he actually lacks the protein that is used to check for it. Then, again after doing some research, I found out that the vast majority of people who lack this protein are allergic to dairy, which we strongly suspect is The Bean's #1 issue. Anyway, we may have him tested for other allergies, but it's not a huge priority right now as things mostly seem to be under control.
His teeth have been an ongoing issue. He lost his first tooth in the spring, which was pretty exciting with the tooth fairy coming to visit and all. His second tooth fell out shortly after. We were happy that they came out as the new ones were already growing in behind the baby teeth. The top two were wobbly for a while and both fell out, again within days of each other, at the end of the school year. Meanwhile his six year molars erupted and when we went for a dentist appointment last month they were already showing signs of decay. The dentist assured us that we're doing a good job looking after his teeth, but that probably because of deficiencies or an illness during their developmen, he has what appears to be very weak enamel and is prone to cavities. Poor kid. He got his eighth filling shortly after that appointment.
He eats well. He seems to like what he likes, and NOT like what he doesn't like. He isn't super into trying new foods, and often will say "Yuck!" before it's even touched his tongue, only to say after another few seconds that actually he does like it. Lately he's been eating a ton which makes me suspect he's about to have another growth spurt. He would be happy to survive on carbs and ketchup.
He's currently about 44/45 inches tall and about 44/45lbs. We just got him new running shoes for school and they are a size 13. They're just a smidge big, but I'm hoping they will last into the new year. In clothing he's anywhere between a 4 and a 6, but leaning towards the larger sizes. Bottoms are generally smaller so they don't fall off his tiny waist. If he had his way he would be either in underwear or pajamas 24/7.
We've been a bit off of our schedule, but generally speaking he goes to bed between 7:30 and 8:30pm and sleeps to about 6:30-7:30am. There were a few days earlier in the summer that he slept until after 9am. It was amazing!
I'm not really looking forward to getting us all back on a schedule for the start of the school year. The Bean is excited that he is going to be in Grade One. I feel like he's ready. Like I've said before, his reading is amazing. His comprehension is just a little behind his reading abilities, but still far beyond what would be expected at his age. His math abilities are average. Science and Social Sciences are probably average too. Gross motor skills are awesome and fine motor are probably right on track. He's able to reflect on his actions and does a pretty decent job with self-regulation, for the most part. I am slightly concerned about how influenced he can be by others, and hope that he'll behave appropriately (meaning with respect for others and with kindness). He's got a strong personality and is very sweet, but he also wants to fit in with the crowd, make people laugh, and get lots of attention.
A story: Back in April he and Sprout had been out drawing on the sidewalk with chalk. He had spent a long time working on the characters from P.J. Masks and Sprout, not really paying attention, drew over some of his work. He was so upset. He grabbed a white chalk and drew a big square around "his" area and went over to Sprout and said, "Sprout, do not draw in my area!" Later on I told him that I was impressed at how he handled the situation, knowing that he had been pretty upset. To which he says to me, "Self-Regulation, Mama." (He's also been known to coach me into taking a breath when I'm losing my temper with them.) Overall I'd say he's a pretty fantastic brother.
And on that note I am going to wrap this very overdue update up. I'm pretty sure this sweet child will be empathetic when he reads these later on and sees how behind I was. He keeps us on our toes and is such a great kid.
Monday, June 19, 2017
Thirty-Seven
Gosh. Does that sound old? I would think nothing of someone else being 37, or 47 or even 77, but me, 37? It hardly seems possible.
I was looking through a box of old photographs tonight. Ones taken on cameras that used actual film.
I came across some from the days when Jen and I first started dating. I think about how young I was then. Just 20 when we met. I think about how then-me would never have imagined everything that's happened in the past 17 years. What would I tell my 20-year-old self? What would she have to say to me?
There were older photos. A few of me as a baby, a kid, a teenager. I don't have many clear memories of my childhood, but I have strong emotions tied to certain places. I wonder what my kids will remember of their own early years. It's hard to imagine that they won't remember sitting on my lap listening to book after book, or dancing in the living room to the same song played on repeat for over an hour. I hope what they do remember is happy.
The years go by quickly.
I was looking through a box of old photographs tonight. Ones taken on cameras that used actual film.
I came across some from the days when Jen and I first started dating. I think about how young I was then. Just 20 when we met. I think about how then-me would never have imagined everything that's happened in the past 17 years. What would I tell my 20-year-old self? What would she have to say to me?
There were older photos. A few of me as a baby, a kid, a teenager. I don't have many clear memories of my childhood, but I have strong emotions tied to certain places. I wonder what my kids will remember of their own early years. It's hard to imagine that they won't remember sitting on my lap listening to book after book, or dancing in the living room to the same song played on repeat for over an hour. I hope what they do remember is happy.
The years go by quickly.
Monday, January 11, 2016
The Bean is Five Years Old!
Today The Bean is five years old!
FIVE. Can you believe it?
This kid. He has been trying to act very grown up lately, "practicing for when I am five", he says. I think he thinks it will make us happy and proud --he is very much a people pleaser-- and it does, but it also makes me want to squeeze him and kiss him all over and toss him up into the air and tickle him and read him a million books while he still enjoys it all.
So, where to begin with our Bean? He really is a complex little person. The past few months have been kind of hard. There were some mixed emotions as he was about start school, and sadly he doesn't seem to be enjoying it as much as we had hoped he would. After the initial adjustment, he seemed happy. In October he was upset for a while because he wanted to be seen as a girl and he felt the other students weren't accepting of that. His teachers were very open and responsive though, and I felt like we had resolved things (meaning, he knew he could be whoever he wanted and the other students were seemingly understanding of that). Then in late November he got a cold, I kept him home for a half day, and after that he did not want to go back. As in crying at drop off many mornings a week, sulking, telling us he was sad/lonely/had a bad day at school etc. I talked to his teachers about it in passing before the break, but they assured me he seemed happy and engaged at school. It's been a bit of a mixed bag since school started up again last week, so I think we're going to ask for a meeting. As his pediatrician said at his well-check this week, he should be happy at school.
So, mood wise, I'd have to say he's been a bit glum, but not all the time. He still has many moments where he is happy and playful and full of giggles and jokes and jumping around. It's very hard as his parent to navigate this. While it's fine to feel sad, I would like to get to the root of it and make it more of an emotion that he only feels on occasion than something he's feeling on a regular basis.
Academically he seems to be doing very well. He comes home reciting many songs and rhymes he is learning at school. He LOOOOOVES visual art and his art teacher (though he is awfully hard on himself when his pictures don't turn out the way he would like). Phys. Ed. of course, is much enjoyed. He's counting to 100, doing some basic arithmetic. And his reading has taken off. I mean, shockingly so. I know he's among the eldest of the JKs, but even still, his ability is pretty remarkable. He can pretty much read any story book from our shelves. He stuggles with unfamiliar words and will still guess at things rather than really sound them out, but for a just-turned-five year old I'm thoroughly impressed. He is also showing an interest in writing and can often be found carrying around a notebook and pencil. He regularly proclaims his love of his teachers and several of his classmates, but does not see, to have a "best buddy" in the class.
For a while now he has been interested in distinguishing between "good" and "bad" (both people and behaviours). I get fairly regular reports over who in his class has misbehaved that day --fortunately he thrives on positive attention and tells me he is "never bad" at school. Before Christmas he became more concerned than we would have liked about whether his behaviour was "good" and what Santa would think. A bit heartbreaking when he would do something like spill a drink and ask right away whether Santa would be upset with him.
As I mentioned already, he is really a people pleaser which makes him pretty cooperative overall. He's been doing a lot that shows his growing independence --getting ready in the mornings, bathing himself and washing his own hair, wanting to help prepare snacks, tidying up after himself and his sister. He glows when given praise. It's a good thing, but we're also aware that it's something that could be taken advantage of. So far there haven't been any issues, but when he talks about friends telling him to do things, we're always a bit more alert than we might be if he weren't so eager to do what others ask/tell him to do.
Somewhat related, he is also very aware of other's expectations and preferences. He often refers to himself and Jen as the boys in the family and will occasionally call her dad. She never makes a big deal out of it, but one day asked why he never calls me dad. He told her it was because he didn't think I would like it if he did.
He loves girls. He especially loves older girls. If they're 10 or 11 and have long blonde hair, I would almost guarantee that he will be talking about them for days.
He's starting to ask more involved questions about why things are the way they are and how things work. He got some really interesting science kits and books along with a set of Magic School Bus DVDs for gifts recently, and I'm sure they'll spark more questions and investigations.
He loves rocket ships, robots and knights. He's just getting into more superheroes (his exposure is pretty limited). Board games are starting to be a semi-regularly requested activity --Camelot Jr. and Jenga are two recent favourites.
Mostly he loves being active. Skatergirl and Scootergirl continue to be two of his alter egos. He is always running, leaping, flipping... He zooms around on his bicycle, practices on his skateboard (doing all the coolest tricks in his mind, I am sure), and just got a very awesome scooter from his Grandma and Grandpa and a (kid's/intro) snowboard from my cousin and her son for his birthday. He took gymnastics lessons this fall which he will be continuing through the winter. While he is developing his skills, I have to say that his body awareness and control is pretty remarkable. He listens carefully to his coach's instructions and really does his best to do things the way they describe.
He still loves music. Living room dance parties have continued. Back in May I got to take him to his frist Whitehorse concert which he was just thrilled about. The lucky, lucky boy got a shout out from Luke Doucet during the encore and his requested song played, even though it was a song they haven't played live in nearly a decade. His new favourite band is Van Morrison. His favourite song: Gloria.
He still loves being read to and will choose tried-and-true favourites from the shelves before bed each night. He has recently shown an interest in the Magic Tree House series of books. We've read a couple and he got a few more for Christmas and Birthday gifts, so I imagine we'll be starting those soon. He and Sprout will pretend to be the characters from the story and go on adventures in our apartment.
He's really started experimenting with different phrases. "Give me a break" "Get over it" "You're killing me" and "I'm dead" are a few that come to mind. He also uses the phrase "You're sweating my paws!" which we're not really sure where he picked up but seems to mean he can't believe what you're saying.
Not much has changed for him in terms of his gastro health. We have had him off of dairy forever now, and it does seem to help, as does having him on a regular dose of fibre, but still there are issues. He does not have Celiac disease and we are not moving forward with a test for Crohns. We suspect he has IBS, as it runs in the family. It's a hard thing to diagnose, as it is really a diagnosis of exclusion. We go back for another specialist appointment in the spring.
His food preferences are about the same, but we're starting to insist that he take a few bites of the things Jen and I are having for dinner. He has a good appetite. He usually has two breakfasts -cereal, toast, cream of wheat, etc. I pack him a hardy lunch and it usually comes back about 3/4 eaten, though he's getting pickier about what he will eat at school. He eats his dinner (and a small dessert) nightly will follow it up with some cheese crackers and often a fruit. We wonder where he puts it all and fear for the teenage years!
He is currently in a growth spurt. He gets thicker looking in the trunk and then shoots up. He had his well check last week, but I forgot to ask for his stats. I know his somewhere in the 10th-25th percentile for both height and weight. A bit of a peanut. I think that's just him. He's consistently in size 4 tops now and moving into more size 4 pants because the 3s are just getting too short. He has tiny hands and feet. About the same size as Sprouts, who is nearly two years younger. His shoe size is a 7.5/8. Sometime mid-November he decided he wanted a haircut, so after months of growing it out he got a super-cute undercut, which we rarely style. Ha!
And while the past few months have had their difficult moments, when he is happy he just shines. The way his eyes light up and his smile radiates is contageous. While I am always happy to be his Mama, I can think of little that makes me feel happier than seeing him in these moments. I love him with my whole self. My baby.
FIVE. Can you believe it?
This kid. He has been trying to act very grown up lately, "practicing for when I am five", he says. I think he thinks it will make us happy and proud --he is very much a people pleaser-- and it does, but it also makes me want to squeeze him and kiss him all over and toss him up into the air and tickle him and read him a million books while he still enjoys it all.
So, where to begin with our Bean? He really is a complex little person. The past few months have been kind of hard. There were some mixed emotions as he was about start school, and sadly he doesn't seem to be enjoying it as much as we had hoped he would. After the initial adjustment, he seemed happy. In October he was upset for a while because he wanted to be seen as a girl and he felt the other students weren't accepting of that. His teachers were very open and responsive though, and I felt like we had resolved things (meaning, he knew he could be whoever he wanted and the other students were seemingly understanding of that). Then in late November he got a cold, I kept him home for a half day, and after that he did not want to go back. As in crying at drop off many mornings a week, sulking, telling us he was sad/lonely/had a bad day at school etc. I talked to his teachers about it in passing before the break, but they assured me he seemed happy and engaged at school. It's been a bit of a mixed bag since school started up again last week, so I think we're going to ask for a meeting. As his pediatrician said at his well-check this week, he should be happy at school.
So, mood wise, I'd have to say he's been a bit glum, but not all the time. He still has many moments where he is happy and playful and full of giggles and jokes and jumping around. It's very hard as his parent to navigate this. While it's fine to feel sad, I would like to get to the root of it and make it more of an emotion that he only feels on occasion than something he's feeling on a regular basis.
Academically he seems to be doing very well. He comes home reciting many songs and rhymes he is learning at school. He LOOOOOVES visual art and his art teacher (though he is awfully hard on himself when his pictures don't turn out the way he would like). Phys. Ed. of course, is much enjoyed. He's counting to 100, doing some basic arithmetic. And his reading has taken off. I mean, shockingly so. I know he's among the eldest of the JKs, but even still, his ability is pretty remarkable. He can pretty much read any story book from our shelves. He stuggles with unfamiliar words and will still guess at things rather than really sound them out, but for a just-turned-five year old I'm thoroughly impressed. He is also showing an interest in writing and can often be found carrying around a notebook and pencil. He regularly proclaims his love of his teachers and several of his classmates, but does not see, to have a "best buddy" in the class.
For a while now he has been interested in distinguishing between "good" and "bad" (both people and behaviours). I get fairly regular reports over who in his class has misbehaved that day --fortunately he thrives on positive attention and tells me he is "never bad" at school. Before Christmas he became more concerned than we would have liked about whether his behaviour was "good" and what Santa would think. A bit heartbreaking when he would do something like spill a drink and ask right away whether Santa would be upset with him.
As I mentioned already, he is really a people pleaser which makes him pretty cooperative overall. He's been doing a lot that shows his growing independence --getting ready in the mornings, bathing himself and washing his own hair, wanting to help prepare snacks, tidying up after himself and his sister. He glows when given praise. It's a good thing, but we're also aware that it's something that could be taken advantage of. So far there haven't been any issues, but when he talks about friends telling him to do things, we're always a bit more alert than we might be if he weren't so eager to do what others ask/tell him to do.
Somewhat related, he is also very aware of other's expectations and preferences. He often refers to himself and Jen as the boys in the family and will occasionally call her dad. She never makes a big deal out of it, but one day asked why he never calls me dad. He told her it was because he didn't think I would like it if he did.
He loves girls. He especially loves older girls. If they're 10 or 11 and have long blonde hair, I would almost guarantee that he will be talking about them for days.
He's starting to ask more involved questions about why things are the way they are and how things work. He got some really interesting science kits and books along with a set of Magic School Bus DVDs for gifts recently, and I'm sure they'll spark more questions and investigations.
Mostly he loves being active. Skatergirl and Scootergirl continue to be two of his alter egos. He is always running, leaping, flipping... He zooms around on his bicycle, practices on his skateboard (doing all the coolest tricks in his mind, I am sure), and just got a very awesome scooter from his Grandma and Grandpa and a (kid's/intro) snowboard from my cousin and her son for his birthday. He took gymnastics lessons this fall which he will be continuing through the winter. While he is developing his skills, I have to say that his body awareness and control is pretty remarkable. He listens carefully to his coach's instructions and really does his best to do things the way they describe.
He still loves music. Living room dance parties have continued. Back in May I got to take him to his frist Whitehorse concert which he was just thrilled about. The lucky, lucky boy got a shout out from Luke Doucet during the encore and his requested song played, even though it was a song they haven't played live in nearly a decade. His new favourite band is Van Morrison. His favourite song: Gloria.
He still loves being read to and will choose tried-and-true favourites from the shelves before bed each night. He has recently shown an interest in the Magic Tree House series of books. We've read a couple and he got a few more for Christmas and Birthday gifts, so I imagine we'll be starting those soon. He and Sprout will pretend to be the characters from the story and go on adventures in our apartment.
He's really started experimenting with different phrases. "Give me a break" "Get over it" "You're killing me" and "I'm dead" are a few that come to mind. He also uses the phrase "You're sweating my paws!" which we're not really sure where he picked up but seems to mean he can't believe what you're saying.
Not much has changed for him in terms of his gastro health. We have had him off of dairy forever now, and it does seem to help, as does having him on a regular dose of fibre, but still there are issues. He does not have Celiac disease and we are not moving forward with a test for Crohns. We suspect he has IBS, as it runs in the family. It's a hard thing to diagnose, as it is really a diagnosis of exclusion. We go back for another specialist appointment in the spring.
His food preferences are about the same, but we're starting to insist that he take a few bites of the things Jen and I are having for dinner. He has a good appetite. He usually has two breakfasts -cereal, toast, cream of wheat, etc. I pack him a hardy lunch and it usually comes back about 3/4 eaten, though he's getting pickier about what he will eat at school. He eats his dinner (and a small dessert) nightly will follow it up with some cheese crackers and often a fruit. We wonder where he puts it all and fear for the teenage years!
He is currently in a growth spurt. He gets thicker looking in the trunk and then shoots up. He had his well check last week, but I forgot to ask for his stats. I know his somewhere in the 10th-25th percentile for both height and weight. A bit of a peanut. I think that's just him. He's consistently in size 4 tops now and moving into more size 4 pants because the 3s are just getting too short. He has tiny hands and feet. About the same size as Sprouts, who is nearly two years younger. His shoe size is a 7.5/8. Sometime mid-November he decided he wanted a haircut, so after months of growing it out he got a super-cute undercut, which we rarely style. Ha!
And while the past few months have had their difficult moments, when he is happy he just shines. The way his eyes light up and his smile radiates is contageous. While I am always happy to be his Mama, I can think of little that makes me feel happier than seeing him in these moments. I love him with my whole self. My baby.
Thursday, December 24, 2015
Sprout is Three Years Old!
Today Sprout is three years old! (Yes, I was slow to get this typed out and have backdated it. ;) )
If I've learned anything about myself as a parent, it is that birthdays always come as a bit of a shock. Our round, pink, screaming newborn is now a little girl who will proudly say "When I was borned I was as cute as a ham!"
This girl, she is a character. Honestly, I'm not sure quite what to make of her. Jen says she is 1/2 completely me, and half my total opposite. We're also learning how she is such a different person from The Bean and figuring out what her needs and personality are versus her older brother.
She is such a silly kid. Her sense of humour continues to blossom. She loves making people laugh. Still faces, nonsensical rhymes, crazy dancing... Often times it's quite clear she is trying to get a reaction, but it's the times that she's not trying that I realize how funny she really is. Quirky in the most endearing of ways.
She is sweet. She will gently place a hand on your cheek and cock her head to the side, asking "Are you okay?" if she thinks something is wrong. She gives the best squeeze hugs ever and sweet little kisses. She likes holding hands and is super-snuggly. She definitely is a person uses touch and looks for physical closeness from those she loves.
Leading up to her birthday we talked a lot about how how three is big, and how three year olds don't need to nurse. She said when she was three that she would stop nursing. I was hopeful, but didn't really expect it to be that easy. Of course, she hasn't stopped. I have made the decision to eliminate her morning nursing session though. Things have been crazy with Christmas and traveling and our schedule being totally off, so maybe it's been a little easier... she isn't pleased about the situation, but I also think she realizes that fussing about it isn't going to make a difference. (Though it does make my heart ache and make me want to give in, just a little, when she seems sad.) We have replaced the nursing session with cuddling before getting out of bed.
She can be incredibly stubborn. I know all toddlers are stubborn, but she just digs in her heels and doesn't budge. The Bean was much more compliant, so figuring out how to navigate this stubborn streak has been a parenting challenge.
She can be a bit defiant and as typical of siblings, will tease her brother from time to time... most often when she gets the coveted pink spoon at mealtimes. For a long time this consisted of her taunting, "I have the pink spoon! Too bad, Bean." One day when Jen and I were out my cousin who had been watching the kids reported back that she had been asking to nurse, and when he told her she couldn't because I was out, she said to herself, "Too bad, Sprout." That made me chuckle.
She has started to occasionally push or hit when she's not getting her way. This is always dealt with by a short time out, followed up by a brief discussion about why she pushed/hit and how that hurts and is not acceptable behaviour. She knows it's not allowed and isn't ever very forceful, but we'd still like to nip it in the bud.
Sleep continues to be a bit of a struggle. If she doesn't nap in the afternoon she is an emotional mess by 4pm and crashes early. If she does nap, she really fights going to bed and will often be awake until close to 9pm. She usually falls asleep easily at nap time, but when she doesn't it's not worth trying to get her to. Fortunately she's pretty good about doing quiet time and will look at books for about a half hour or an hour before saying she's ready to come out of her room. She had started to get into an elaborate bedtime routine of asking for water... and pillows beside her bed... and to use the washroom... and to have a gargoyle to protect her, etc. before we left for the holidays. Hopefully it does not resume when we get back home.
She loves books and LOVES being read to. She doesn't have any strong and true favourites. She likes fairy tales and other princess stories, but also enjoys funny books, adventure stories... anything really. She will sit and listen to stories being read for over an hour... I almost always am done before she is. She also really takes in what is being read and what the pictures show and asks a lot of questions about what words mean or what a character is doing.
Her favourite game is to pretend she is a baby. She and her brother can be quite creative in their play and often will play for a long time together... babies, but camping, Christmas, knights and princesses and Jack and Annie (from the Magic Tree House series of books) have been other recent themes. Her alter ego is still a ballerina princess. She loves to wear her "princess dress."
She loves playing with her babies and toy animals. Her only request for Christmas was a cradle for her babies. Santa did not disappoint. (On a side note: she was SO excited about Christmas. We let the kids pick out gifts for each other and she promptly told The Bean what she got him. She just couldn't wait!)
She was in three programs/classes during the fall. An art program, a dance program and an outdoor education program. The outdoor education one was fantastic and a nice way to get outdoors and explore, as well as meet some new people. The art and dance classes were at the local library and we attended with my cousin's son who is becoming one of Sprout's best friends. They weren't stellar from an instructional standpoint, but she enjoyed them none the less. We have a music class and a program at a city farm lined up for the winter.
Her language skills continue to develop. She is a chatterbox, but can still be a bit hard to understand at times. When she's excited her voice goes up about three octaves and I joke that she's turned into a cartoon character. Some of our favourite of her misspoken words are "Absowootwe" "Vampirate" and "Snissors." We rarely correct her one these ones just because we love them so much. Other words/phrases that she uses regularly are "Perhaps", "I'm exhausted!", "I'm all puffeled up" (meaning she is full), and "Big thumbs up!" with her forefingers held in the air. She still mixes up pronouns and will say "What is her doing?" rather than "What is she doing?"
If she's not chattering away she will be singing. It could be a nursery rhyme, or Christmas carol or sometimes a little song that she has made up.
She has good manners, and will usually say "thank you" when you do something for her or give her something. Her appreciation was so sincere over Christmas. It was so sweet and made me feel quite proud.
She can count reasonably well and can hold up the correct number of fingers on one hand. She even will alter the ways she holds up three fingers.
She loves to run and jump and climb and skip. She is a little bit clumsy and will often call out "Just me!" when she falls. She's become much more bold recently, letting us toss and flip her around more and will often request that we "Please do that again?"
She's a bit fussy over clothes and also very observant over what others are wearing. If I grab Jen's socks or sweatshirt she always notices and calls me out on it. Funnily, when she wears clothing with pockets, she will put her hands into them and proclaim, "Me mama!" (She also loves pockets to carry money in. She goes nuts over coins. If you drop change she will literally run out from whatever room she is in, in the hopes that you will give her some.)
She's grown! She continues to be a big kid. We have her three year check up early in the new year, so I'll get her official stats then. She's now mostly in 3t clothing, though some smaller things still fit. Shoe size is holding steady at 7. She weighs somewhere in the low 30lbs range. She's definitely stretching out and though she has a nice round belly, she's lost most of her chubby baby rolls. People often comment on her hair, which despite a recent trim, is getting quite long. It's such a gorgeous colour. She doesn't like having it combed, but will tolerate it if I put a video on my phone for her. If she starts to fuss too much about it, I'll insist that it get cut shorter, but so far she does okay. She wants to have "Rapunzel hair".
Eating continues to be fine. She doesn't eat a huge variety of foods, but eats a reasonable number of things from each food group, so it's manageable. She loves dairy products and sweets. A recent favourite is croissants, which she calls "poissants".
Her favouite people still mostly consist of family members (me, Grandma, and my cousin, though Jen and Grandpa are in there too, whether she will admit it or not). Her best friends are The Bean, my cousin's son, and Teagan and Quinn. She will regularly say she is going to any one or several of these people. She also named her new doll Quinny. <3 p="">
She uses the potty/toilet consistently, but still needs reminders as she will wait until the very last second to go. She wears a diaper at naps and bedtime. Naps are hit or miss on whether she'll wake up dry, but she is always wet overnight. I feel like it's going to be a while before she's able to go through the night.
It's a wonder to see the many ways she has grown and changed over the past year(s), but also to see how she has stayed the same. She brings us such joy and we love her more than we could have ever imagined!
This girl, she is a character. Honestly, I'm not sure quite what to make of her. Jen says she is 1/2 completely me, and half my total opposite. We're also learning how she is such a different person from The Bean and figuring out what her needs and personality are versus her older brother.
She is such a silly kid. Her sense of humour continues to blossom. She loves making people laugh. Still faces, nonsensical rhymes, crazy dancing... Often times it's quite clear she is trying to get a reaction, but it's the times that she's not trying that I realize how funny she really is. Quirky in the most endearing of ways.
She is sweet. She will gently place a hand on your cheek and cock her head to the side, asking "Are you okay?" if she thinks something is wrong. She gives the best squeeze hugs ever and sweet little kisses. She likes holding hands and is super-snuggly. She definitely is a person uses touch and looks for physical closeness from those she loves.
Leading up to her birthday we talked a lot about how how three is big, and how three year olds don't need to nurse. She said when she was three that she would stop nursing. I was hopeful, but didn't really expect it to be that easy. Of course, she hasn't stopped. I have made the decision to eliminate her morning nursing session though. Things have been crazy with Christmas and traveling and our schedule being totally off, so maybe it's been a little easier... she isn't pleased about the situation, but I also think she realizes that fussing about it isn't going to make a difference. (Though it does make my heart ache and make me want to give in, just a little, when she seems sad.) We have replaced the nursing session with cuddling before getting out of bed.
She can be incredibly stubborn. I know all toddlers are stubborn, but she just digs in her heels and doesn't budge. The Bean was much more compliant, so figuring out how to navigate this stubborn streak has been a parenting challenge.
She can be a bit defiant and as typical of siblings, will tease her brother from time to time... most often when she gets the coveted pink spoon at mealtimes. For a long time this consisted of her taunting, "I have the pink spoon! Too bad, Bean." One day when Jen and I were out my cousin who had been watching the kids reported back that she had been asking to nurse, and when he told her she couldn't because I was out, she said to herself, "Too bad, Sprout." That made me chuckle.
She has started to occasionally push or hit when she's not getting her way. This is always dealt with by a short time out, followed up by a brief discussion about why she pushed/hit and how that hurts and is not acceptable behaviour. She knows it's not allowed and isn't ever very forceful, but we'd still like to nip it in the bud.
Sleep continues to be a bit of a struggle. If she doesn't nap in the afternoon she is an emotional mess by 4pm and crashes early. If she does nap, she really fights going to bed and will often be awake until close to 9pm. She usually falls asleep easily at nap time, but when she doesn't it's not worth trying to get her to. Fortunately she's pretty good about doing quiet time and will look at books for about a half hour or an hour before saying she's ready to come out of her room. She had started to get into an elaborate bedtime routine of asking for water... and pillows beside her bed... and to use the washroom... and to have a gargoyle to protect her, etc. before we left for the holidays. Hopefully it does not resume when we get back home.
She loves books and LOVES being read to. She doesn't have any strong and true favourites. She likes fairy tales and other princess stories, but also enjoys funny books, adventure stories... anything really. She will sit and listen to stories being read for over an hour... I almost always am done before she is. She also really takes in what is being read and what the pictures show and asks a lot of questions about what words mean or what a character is doing.
Her favourite game is to pretend she is a baby. She and her brother can be quite creative in their play and often will play for a long time together... babies, but camping, Christmas, knights and princesses and Jack and Annie (from the Magic Tree House series of books) have been other recent themes. Her alter ego is still a ballerina princess. She loves to wear her "princess dress."
She loves playing with her babies and toy animals. Her only request for Christmas was a cradle for her babies. Santa did not disappoint. (On a side note: she was SO excited about Christmas. We let the kids pick out gifts for each other and she promptly told The Bean what she got him. She just couldn't wait!)
She was in three programs/classes during the fall. An art program, a dance program and an outdoor education program. The outdoor education one was fantastic and a nice way to get outdoors and explore, as well as meet some new people. The art and dance classes were at the local library and we attended with my cousin's son who is becoming one of Sprout's best friends. They weren't stellar from an instructional standpoint, but she enjoyed them none the less. We have a music class and a program at a city farm lined up for the winter.
Her language skills continue to develop. She is a chatterbox, but can still be a bit hard to understand at times. When she's excited her voice goes up about three octaves and I joke that she's turned into a cartoon character. Some of our favourite of her misspoken words are "Absowootwe" "Vampirate" and "Snissors." We rarely correct her one these ones just because we love them so much. Other words/phrases that she uses regularly are "Perhaps", "I'm exhausted!", "I'm all puffeled up" (meaning she is full), and "Big thumbs up!" with her forefingers held in the air. She still mixes up pronouns and will say "What is her doing?" rather than "What is she doing?"
If she's not chattering away she will be singing. It could be a nursery rhyme, or Christmas carol or sometimes a little song that she has made up.
She has good manners, and will usually say "thank you" when you do something for her or give her something. Her appreciation was so sincere over Christmas. It was so sweet and made me feel quite proud.
She can count reasonably well and can hold up the correct number of fingers on one hand. She even will alter the ways she holds up three fingers.
She loves to run and jump and climb and skip. She is a little bit clumsy and will often call out "Just me!" when she falls. She's become much more bold recently, letting us toss and flip her around more and will often request that we "Please do that again?"
She's a bit fussy over clothes and also very observant over what others are wearing. If I grab Jen's socks or sweatshirt she always notices and calls me out on it. Funnily, when she wears clothing with pockets, she will put her hands into them and proclaim, "Me mama!" (She also loves pockets to carry money in. She goes nuts over coins. If you drop change she will literally run out from whatever room she is in, in the hopes that you will give her some.)
She's grown! She continues to be a big kid. We have her three year check up early in the new year, so I'll get her official stats then. She's now mostly in 3t clothing, though some smaller things still fit. Shoe size is holding steady at 7. She weighs somewhere in the low 30lbs range. She's definitely stretching out and though she has a nice round belly, she's lost most of her chubby baby rolls. People often comment on her hair, which despite a recent trim, is getting quite long. It's such a gorgeous colour. She doesn't like having it combed, but will tolerate it if I put a video on my phone for her. If she starts to fuss too much about it, I'll insist that it get cut shorter, but so far she does okay. She wants to have "Rapunzel hair".
Eating continues to be fine. She doesn't eat a huge variety of foods, but eats a reasonable number of things from each food group, so it's manageable. She loves dairy products and sweets. A recent favourite is croissants, which she calls "poissants".
Her favouite people still mostly consist of family members (me, Grandma, and my cousin, though Jen and Grandpa are in there too, whether she will admit it or not). Her best friends are The Bean, my cousin's son, and Teagan and Quinn. She will regularly say she is going to any one or several of these people. She also named her new doll Quinny. <3 p="">
She uses the potty/toilet consistently, but still needs reminders as she will wait until the very last second to go. She wears a diaper at naps and bedtime. Naps are hit or miss on whether she'll wake up dry, but she is always wet overnight. I feel like it's going to be a while before she's able to go through the night.
It's a wonder to see the many ways she has grown and changed over the past year(s), but also to see how she has stayed the same. She brings us such joy and we love her more than we could have ever imagined!
Monday, January 19, 2015
The Bean is Four Years Old!
So, let's talk about this four year old we have, shall we?
It's hard to even know where to begin. The past six months with The Bean have been good ones.
The Bean, like his mommy, is a bit of a homebody. He's usually quite content to spend the day at home playing with toys, reading books, and watching (a limited amount of) shows (Octonauts and Berenstain Bears are his current favourites). That said, he loves to go outdoors, but it is sometimes a bit of a struggle to get him out the door, particularly if it's not to go to a park. (It's also much harder getting him out the door in winter weather than in the summer.)
This might sound a bit contradictory, but he is incredibly active. I know from experience that most parents seem to think this about their four-year-olds, but he honestly is one of the most active kids I've come across. He loves throwing and catching and hitting and kicking balls of all sorts. He would happily spend all day climbing, sliding, swinging, etc. Jen and I joke that he doesn't walk anywhere, he dances. He moves in skips and jumps and twirls. He loved his gymnastic class this fall and has a new-found (refound?) love for swimming, though he still doesn't like getting his face wet. We're trying to figure out what programs he might enjoy the most this spring. Likely swimming and/or gymnastics, but maybe dance or soccer... it's still undecided.
We recently went ice skating with him for the first time. He was very excited about the idea of skating, but mostly just liked hanging out in his gear. He did let us push him around the rink a few times.
We are not really a professional-sports watching family, but if you're from Pittsburgh it's a given that you will be a Steelers fan, so we've been training the kids accordingly. The Bean gets super excited when he sees a game and will chant "Here we go Steelers!" with the best of them.
He has started to really engage in pretend play with figures. He has been using the doll house more and got a toy castle for Christmas from my mom that he has been playing with daily. He continues role playing in our play kitchen, as a Mommy to his babies (white blanket, pumpkin man and his "big boy" Rajah the tiger), and with dress up costumes.
He got Magnatiles for Christmas from Santa (Grandma and Grandpa) and has gotten into building with those too. He also plays with his wooden blocks in combination with his Bruder trucks and Hotwheels cars, and has started building really tall towers ("apartments") with Duplo. He'll occasionally ask us to build him train tracks, doesn't seem to love the trains the way some kids do.
He's started doing more artwork, which I adore. He can draw figures now (a face with legs and sometimes arms), though most of his art is still very free-form with deeply involved stories to go along with it. He likes to paint (mostly with black), he has gotten much better with scissors and enjoys working in his tracing books. He can write his name, though I must admit, he has regressed a bit with this from the time he was in daycare until now. He also really likes playing with Playdoh.
He LOVES books. His current favourites are some beautiful fairy tales (Beauty and the Beast and Rapunzel) we got the kids for Christmas. He's also been loving This is New York. Prior to these, he was asking for Little Critter, Berenstain Bears, and/or Curious George daily (ugh). He has many books memorized, but prefers to be read to. He got something called a SparkUp from my sister for Christmas which you can record books into. It's been getting a lot of use.
He recognizes all his letters and knows their sounds. He hasn't started reading yet, though he has asked several times that I start teaching him. It's something I need to make more of a point of. Maybe print up a few CVC word cards and matching pictures or something. He is ready.
He's also been asking to "learn about the world," meaning geography. We got him a wall map and have been pointing out places and talking about what you can find there, the langues that are spoken, etc. I'm not really a geography buff, but again, I am hoping to get around to putting together a few little packages for him about different continents and countries.
There is no doubt about it, this kids' forte is language. He is incredibly articulate. He also loves learning new words and trying them out and will make up his own words, then explain what they mean to us. The one that comes to mind most easily is "chucking," which means hitting something with a stick.
With him being at home now, I feel like his social circle is quite small. Basically family and a few good friends. Sometimes I think he needs more than this small world, but at other times I worry about what the influence of others will do to his polite, (mostly) well-behaved, kind, playful, creative, innocent self. It's not that he's perfect 100% of the time, but he is free to do the things he enjoys, isn't overly rough, is very protected from media --commercials, violence, etc. He is a nice kid. A good kid. I don't want that to change. But he is also a kid who is curious to experiment, that takes in what is going on around him and who tests limits, so I expect that we will have some conflict over what is and isn't appropriate or acceptable once he is exposed to other kiddos.
Though he is a good kid, he does have his moments. We've been using a "1, 2, 3" timeout approach that seems to work pretty effectively.
Lately he has been saying that he wants to be a girl. Related to that he has been saying he wants to grow his hair long. We're not sure if he wants to be a girl so that he can have long hair, or if he wants to have long hair so that he can be a girl, or if both have to do with something else all together. He has no other requests to make himself more girl-like. I trimmed his hair the other week to give it some shape (mullets are not acceptable on boys or girls), but he's got a good shag going.
He has started to have a bit of an opinion about his clothing. Basically he wants to live in his pajamas. We make him get dressed everyday, but have conceded to it mostly being in "comfy" (elastic-waisted) pants and long-sleeved t-shirts. Every once in a while I can get him into skinny jeans and a polo or sweater. As soon as I get home after work he is allowed to change back into his pajamas and he usually rushes into his bedroom after giving me a super-fast hug and kiss hello.
His sleep continues to be pretty good. Its been about 6 weeks since he stopped napping. Prior to that we were struggling to get him down at night, but since the switch its been much easier. There are still days, particularly days where we are active in the morning, that he will fall asleep during "quiet time," but they are more the exception than the rule at this point. He's often sort of grumpy by the time we're home in the evening, but I think it's a worthwhile trade off to have him sleeping well overnight. Unfortunately he has been having some nightmares lately. We've been talking to him about how he can control things in his dreams, and it seems to be helping. Hopefully this stage is short-lived.
His lovely is "white blanket," she is a tan blanket with white polk-a-dots, who he will also refer to as his baby. He's also rather attached to "pumpkin man" which is a little orange kitted doll that my Nana made several years ago but gave to him a couple of Halloweens ago. Rajah, his stuffed tiger, also is usually in his bed. His hippo Owen has been relegated to the basket of stuffies on top of the bookshelf.
Not a lovey, but an often-talked about companion, is his son. (Who is nameless.) His son is quite naughty and does many things that The Bean is not allowed to do.
Food is about the same as it has been, I think. He eats a few things from the various food groups, but is definitely reluctant to stray away from the foods he knows and likes. He sometimes declares that he doesn't like something, often an old favourite, anymore, which is frustrating. We insist on him trying things, and sometimes he decides he likes it, but often he spits it out. I look forward to him becoming a more adventurous eater again. (He liked nearly everything we put in front of him from the time he started solids until he was two.)
His stomach issues are far from resolved, but on the advice of a pediatric specialist we have introduced a daily dose of fibre into his diet, which seems to be helping with some of the constipation issues he was having.
He is still a peanut. He is now in size 3 clothes, both on the top and the bottom and size 7 shoes. I have no idea how tall he is and I think he weighs somewhere around 34lbs. We have his four year check up on Wednesday, so I'll be able to update his stats then.
The Bean is a true free spirit. He lives in the moment and wears his heart on his sleeve. We love him with all our hearts and couldn't ask for a sweeter son.
It's hard to even know where to begin. The past six months with The Bean have been good ones.
The Bean, like his mommy, is a bit of a homebody. He's usually quite content to spend the day at home playing with toys, reading books, and watching (a limited amount of) shows (Octonauts and Berenstain Bears are his current favourites). That said, he loves to go outdoors, but it is sometimes a bit of a struggle to get him out the door, particularly if it's not to go to a park. (It's also much harder getting him out the door in winter weather than in the summer.)
This might sound a bit contradictory, but he is incredibly active. I know from experience that most parents seem to think this about their four-year-olds, but he honestly is one of the most active kids I've come across. He loves throwing and catching and hitting and kicking balls of all sorts. He would happily spend all day climbing, sliding, swinging, etc. Jen and I joke that he doesn't walk anywhere, he dances. He moves in skips and jumps and twirls. He loved his gymnastic class this fall and has a new-found (refound?) love for swimming, though he still doesn't like getting his face wet. We're trying to figure out what programs he might enjoy the most this spring. Likely swimming and/or gymnastics, but maybe dance or soccer... it's still undecided.
We recently went ice skating with him for the first time. He was very excited about the idea of skating, but mostly just liked hanging out in his gear. He did let us push him around the rink a few times.
We are not really a professional-sports watching family, but if you're from Pittsburgh it's a given that you will be a Steelers fan, so we've been training the kids accordingly. The Bean gets super excited when he sees a game and will chant "Here we go Steelers!" with the best of them.
He has started to really engage in pretend play with figures. He has been using the doll house more and got a toy castle for Christmas from my mom that he has been playing with daily. He continues role playing in our play kitchen, as a Mommy to his babies (white blanket, pumpkin man and his "big boy" Rajah the tiger), and with dress up costumes.
He got Magnatiles for Christmas from Santa (Grandma and Grandpa) and has gotten into building with those too. He also plays with his wooden blocks in combination with his Bruder trucks and Hotwheels cars, and has started building really tall towers ("apartments") with Duplo. He'll occasionally ask us to build him train tracks, doesn't seem to love the trains the way some kids do.
He's started doing more artwork, which I adore. He can draw figures now (a face with legs and sometimes arms), though most of his art is still very free-form with deeply involved stories to go along with it. He likes to paint (mostly with black), he has gotten much better with scissors and enjoys working in his tracing books. He can write his name, though I must admit, he has regressed a bit with this from the time he was in daycare until now. He also really likes playing with Playdoh.
He LOVES books. His current favourites are some beautiful fairy tales (Beauty and the Beast and Rapunzel) we got the kids for Christmas. He's also been loving This is New York. Prior to these, he was asking for Little Critter, Berenstain Bears, and/or Curious George daily (ugh). He has many books memorized, but prefers to be read to. He got something called a SparkUp from my sister for Christmas which you can record books into. It's been getting a lot of use.
He recognizes all his letters and knows their sounds. He hasn't started reading yet, though he has asked several times that I start teaching him. It's something I need to make more of a point of. Maybe print up a few CVC word cards and matching pictures or something. He is ready.
He's also been asking to "learn about the world," meaning geography. We got him a wall map and have been pointing out places and talking about what you can find there, the langues that are spoken, etc. I'm not really a geography buff, but again, I am hoping to get around to putting together a few little packages for him about different continents and countries.
There is no doubt about it, this kids' forte is language. He is incredibly articulate. He also loves learning new words and trying them out and will make up his own words, then explain what they mean to us. The one that comes to mind most easily is "chucking," which means hitting something with a stick.
With him being at home now, I feel like his social circle is quite small. Basically family and a few good friends. Sometimes I think he needs more than this small world, but at other times I worry about what the influence of others will do to his polite, (mostly) well-behaved, kind, playful, creative, innocent self. It's not that he's perfect 100% of the time, but he is free to do the things he enjoys, isn't overly rough, is very protected from media --commercials, violence, etc. He is a nice kid. A good kid. I don't want that to change. But he is also a kid who is curious to experiment, that takes in what is going on around him and who tests limits, so I expect that we will have some conflict over what is and isn't appropriate or acceptable once he is exposed to other kiddos.
Though he is a good kid, he does have his moments. We've been using a "1, 2, 3" timeout approach that seems to work pretty effectively.
Lately he has been saying that he wants to be a girl. Related to that he has been saying he wants to grow his hair long. We're not sure if he wants to be a girl so that he can have long hair, or if he wants to have long hair so that he can be a girl, or if both have to do with something else all together. He has no other requests to make himself more girl-like. I trimmed his hair the other week to give it some shape (mullets are not acceptable on boys or girls), but he's got a good shag going.
He has started to have a bit of an opinion about his clothing. Basically he wants to live in his pajamas. We make him get dressed everyday, but have conceded to it mostly being in "comfy" (elastic-waisted) pants and long-sleeved t-shirts. Every once in a while I can get him into skinny jeans and a polo or sweater. As soon as I get home after work he is allowed to change back into his pajamas and he usually rushes into his bedroom after giving me a super-fast hug and kiss hello.
His sleep continues to be pretty good. Its been about 6 weeks since he stopped napping. Prior to that we were struggling to get him down at night, but since the switch its been much easier. There are still days, particularly days where we are active in the morning, that he will fall asleep during "quiet time," but they are more the exception than the rule at this point. He's often sort of grumpy by the time we're home in the evening, but I think it's a worthwhile trade off to have him sleeping well overnight. Unfortunately he has been having some nightmares lately. We've been talking to him about how he can control things in his dreams, and it seems to be helping. Hopefully this stage is short-lived.
His lovely is "white blanket," she is a tan blanket with white polk-a-dots, who he will also refer to as his baby. He's also rather attached to "pumpkin man" which is a little orange kitted doll that my Nana made several years ago but gave to him a couple of Halloweens ago. Rajah, his stuffed tiger, also is usually in his bed. His hippo Owen has been relegated to the basket of stuffies on top of the bookshelf.
Not a lovey, but an often-talked about companion, is his son. (Who is nameless.) His son is quite naughty and does many things that The Bean is not allowed to do.
Food is about the same as it has been, I think. He eats a few things from the various food groups, but is definitely reluctant to stray away from the foods he knows and likes. He sometimes declares that he doesn't like something, often an old favourite, anymore, which is frustrating. We insist on him trying things, and sometimes he decides he likes it, but often he spits it out. I look forward to him becoming a more adventurous eater again. (He liked nearly everything we put in front of him from the time he started solids until he was two.)
His stomach issues are far from resolved, but on the advice of a pediatric specialist we have introduced a daily dose of fibre into his diet, which seems to be helping with some of the constipation issues he was having.
He is still a peanut. He is now in size 3 clothes, both on the top and the bottom and size 7 shoes. I have no idea how tall he is and I think he weighs somewhere around 34lbs. We have his four year check up on Wednesday, so I'll be able to update his stats then.
The Bean is a true free spirit. He lives in the moment and wears his heart on his sleeve. We love him with all our hearts and couldn't ask for a sweeter son.
Monday, July 28, 2014
Sprout is Nineteen Months Old!
Today Sprout is nineteen months old!
Maybe I say this every month, but this past month has really flown by. After the last update I thought it would be a good idea to write some of the changes in Sprout's development down as I noticed them. I was a bit neglectful... six bullet points is as far as I got. Of course, there have been many other changes. I will do my best to remember and make note of them here...
-I said about her knowing her own mind --two notes in that regard
1) She really wants to figure out this potty thing. Often when I take off her diaper she will go sit on the potty. She likes to stay naked on the bottom and run back and forth to it, sitting for a few minutes, then getting up to play. She gets quite upset when I try to put a diaper on her in this situation. However, she has yet to have a "successful" potty trip and really is not aware that she has to pee until it is happening /has happened.
2) She is determined to dress herself. This can be such a battle when I am trying to get us out somewhere, but mostly I am trying to just let her figure it out or help her to the degree which she deems acceptable. The result is often waist in the leg hole of her shorts, things on backwards, etc. but she's one and a half and we're at home, so what does it matter? Right?
Maybe I say this every month, but this past month has really flown by. After the last update I thought it would be a good idea to write some of the changes in Sprout's development down as I noticed them. I was a bit neglectful... six bullet points is as far as I got. Of course, there have been many other changes. I will do my best to remember and make note of them here...
-Perhaps one of the biggest changes is that Sprout is now spending (most of) her nights in a crib in the kids' room. This feels life-changing. And while I miss having my baby right beside me during the nights, the truth is that I think we are both/all sleeping better now. I felt like I was never falling into a proper sleep, always listening to her toss and turn and wondering if she was going to wake up and want to nurse, or be held, or whatever. After spending a few days away in a hotel, we were able to test out how the kids did sharing a room. Sprout's nighttime cries didn't seem to wake up her brother, so rather spontaneously (if you can call something you've waited over a year to do spontaneous) we decided to put her in the crib in the kids room at home. She was really tired the first night, so it went really well... she didn't wake up until 5:30am, at which point I brought her into our room and I nursed and cuddled her until a more reasonable wake-up time. Since then she's been waking once or twice before we go to bed, but settling back down fairly easily, and then waking up any time after 4am to join me in our room. She still naps in our room because she's a frequent nap waker and I really, really don't want her disturbing her brother's naps. That time is too precious to me.
-As I mentioned, we went away for a few nights. Jen's parents treated us to a stay at an indoor water park out their way. It was very fun and solidified Sprout's love of the water. She may have said "splash" more than she said "mama" while we were there, and that is a lot. ;)
-She's continued to add new words and sounds into her vocabulary. Ball, man man (for Spiderman), hop, and cluck come to mind. She's also started putting two words together, sometimes three even. No examples are jumping to mind immediately, but things like "more milk" and "hot blow" (the food is hot, blow on it) and "baby in" (put the doll in the stroller) come to mind.
-She definitely knows her own mind. She often requests "help" or "hand" when she wants you to do something. As I think I mentioned last month, "no" is another big word. "Mm Hm" is her usual affirmative response. And when you ask her a question, she will adorably tap her chin and say "Hmmm." I have no idea where she picked it up, but I love it.
-I said about her knowing her own mind --two notes in that regard
1) She really wants to figure out this potty thing. Often when I take off her diaper she will go sit on the potty. She likes to stay naked on the bottom and run back and forth to it, sitting for a few minutes, then getting up to play. She gets quite upset when I try to put a diaper on her in this situation. However, she has yet to have a "successful" potty trip and really is not aware that she has to pee until it is happening /has happened.
2) She is determined to dress herself. This can be such a battle when I am trying to get us out somewhere, but mostly I am trying to just let her figure it out or help her to the degree which she deems acceptable. The result is often waist in the leg hole of her shorts, things on backwards, etc. but she's one and a half and we're at home, so what does it matter? Right?
-Like her brother, she's been getting really into dancing to music. It's pretty adorable as she tries to copy many of his "moves." We took her to a couple of live shows this past week and she had such a good time running around and dancing.
-She can jump! She actually gets airborne for a half a second. She loves it. She's also taken to leaping onto the couch from our ottoman. I'm just waiting for a crash. Hopefully we can avoid any ER visits.
-She is still totally obsessed with her babies.
-She also LOVES airplanes. She'll point and bounce and call out "pane! pane! up! fi!" when she sees one. Which is often. We live relatively close to an airport.
-Her favourite books are Welcome Summer and other touch and feels, Zoe's Snowy/Windy/Sunny/Rainy Day, The Carrot Seed, and Hop on Pop which she calls Hop Pop. She listens to a lot of The Bean's longer books since I read to both of them together before naps, but she seems to prefer the books meant for younger ones. Which makes sense, but I still find notable.
-She is both a shy, snugglebug and an outgoing silly billy. I had to use the above photo for this month's update because it shows what a goofball she can be. She has the best, best smiles, but mostly saves them for those she's the most comfortable with. She's also a big joker. We get a kick out of her.
-I know many of you don't know her name, or her many nicknames, but she will point to herself and say her name, and she will also call herself "B", which is a part of one her nick names... the one The Bean most often calls her. I think it's adorable. (Of course, I think about 95% of what she does is adorable, so maybe I'm not the best person to comment on this!)
-She is still a frequent nurser. It's been a while now that she just nurses before going to sleep or when she wakes up, but she sometimes asks in between those times. Often I distract her, occasionally I nurse her. I'm so, so happy to have this relationship with her. It's exhausting, but it is also so nice to be able to hold her and stare at her and feel her little body relax as her breath changes and she calms down and falls to sleep. It's a privilege. Though I sometimes think that it would be nice for my body to be my own again, and to get a full night's sleep would be oh so amazing, I am not wishing away these moments.
-She is still totally obsessed with her babies.
-She also LOVES airplanes. She'll point and bounce and call out "pane! pane! up! fi!" when she sees one. Which is often. We live relatively close to an airport.
-Her favourite books are Welcome Summer and other touch and feels, Zoe's Snowy/Windy/Sunny/Rainy Day, The Carrot Seed, and Hop on Pop which she calls Hop Pop. She listens to a lot of The Bean's longer books since I read to both of them together before naps, but she seems to prefer the books meant for younger ones. Which makes sense, but I still find notable.
-She is both a shy, snugglebug and an outgoing silly billy. I had to use the above photo for this month's update because it shows what a goofball she can be. She has the best, best smiles, but mostly saves them for those she's the most comfortable with. She's also a big joker. We get a kick out of her.
-I know many of you don't know her name, or her many nicknames, but she will point to herself and say her name, and she will also call herself "B", which is a part of one her nick names... the one The Bean most often calls her. I think it's adorable. (Of course, I think about 95% of what she does is adorable, so maybe I'm not the best person to comment on this!)
-She is still a frequent nurser. It's been a while now that she just nurses before going to sleep or when she wakes up, but she sometimes asks in between those times. Often I distract her, occasionally I nurse her. I'm so, so happy to have this relationship with her. It's exhausting, but it is also so nice to be able to hold her and stare at her and feel her little body relax as her breath changes and she calms down and falls to sleep. It's a privilege. Though I sometimes think that it would be nice for my body to be my own again, and to get a full night's sleep would be oh so amazing, I am not wishing away these moments.
-Food is about the same. Sometimes she's a bit finicky. I think she gets pretty significant pain with teething, and although I haven't noticed any new teeth trying to push their way through, I wouldn't be surprised if sometimes when she doesn't want to eat if it's because she's in pain. Again, knowing that she'll nurse and get the nutrients and calories she needs makes me much less concerned about missed meals.
I think that's pretty good for now. Hopefully I keep up on all the progress over this current month a little better than I have been. Mostly she continues to be a loving, silly, joyful little bug. It's so wonderful to be her family.
I think that's pretty good for now. Hopefully I keep up on all the progress over this current month a little better than I have been. Mostly she continues to be a loving, silly, joyful little bug. It's so wonderful to be her family.
Monday, July 14, 2014
The Bean at Three and a Half Years Old
Somehow our little Bean isn't quite so little of a bean anymore. As much as we still think of him as our baby, he is no longer a baby and not even really a toddler anymore. He's a real and true kid. A big kid, if you ask him. (Though he really isn't that big.)
Size wise I'd guess that he's a bit over 30lbs and three feet and a few inches tall. Clothes are anywhere from 24m-3T on top and 18m-2T on the bottom. I'm glad it's summer and the clothes he's wearing are short sleeved and legged. It makes dressing him easier. Maybe by the fall he'll have filled out a bit and the sizes that are long enough also fit around his middle. Shoes are size 7ish.
What he lacks in size he makes up for in personality. I never would have expected a child of ours to be so outgoing, but he is. He has his moments of shyness, especially when around people he hasn't seen for a while, but he warms up quickly. Then, well, he'll chat your ear off and isn't shy about telling you what he would like you to do with him. He waves to people from the shopping cart in the grocery store, asking them about what they're buying, or (more likely) telling them about his day. He says hello to pretty much every person we pass when we're out for walks and always seems a little heartbroken if they don't say hello back.
His vocabulary is impressive. He also has a way of saying things that seems precocious for a child his age. We often get comments about his language skills. We know he's advanced in this regard, but it's hard for us to recognize. Even with having taught kids this age, I can't really remember well enough to compare. Sometimes when he's upset he has a hard time getting started saying something and will stutter over the first syllable, but usually the words flow pretty easily.
Yes, he's a chatty little "people person." We've also noticed how much he wants to engage with us. Though he'll have periods of content solo play, he definitely prefers Jen or I playing with him. He can be pretty demanding about it, which is hard, because we cannot play with him all the time but we do not enjoy being yelled at. We've been working a lot on "asking nicely" and "tone of voice." Sometimes the reminders help, other times not so much. (They usually seem to help more when he is getting what he wants, and not work so well when he is not.) Alternately, he can also be incredibly sweet: cuddling, stroking our faces and giving compliments.
He is a pretty great big brother, we have, however, started to see some signs of jealousy. He used to say that he was going to pretend to be "Baby Blah" but now he'll just say that he's Sprout outright. He wants to be babied too. (Not that we really baby Sprout, but you know.) I think being home with me and Sprout full time has made this more of an issue, but he LOVES being home overall.
He usually wakes up with ideas about where he wants to go or what he wants to do that day. We typically do an outing in the morning --the zoo, the farm, The Science Centre, an indoor playground, a park, etc. In the afternoon we tend to stick closer to home, often playing in the yard or at a nearby park, though there were a few weeks when we were checking out splash pads on a regular basis.
So, yes, he is now home with me full time. I'm not sure how much I have said here already, but after our daycare provider went through radiation she came to us and asked how we felt about her taking the rest of the summer off. It was something we had discussed doing even if she had been feeling better, so we readily agreed. With nothing yet lined up for the fall, we've decided that he'll stay home with me and Sprout for the rest of the year unless I happen to get a full time job, in which case we'll place them both in daycare. (Hopefully the one he's been in, but we'll see if there are spaces available when/if that happens.)
The Bean is incredibly active. Jen and I joke that he doesn't know how to walk, that he can only run. He loves to play "sports", jump, climb, swing, slide, bike, scooter, swim, etc. We've been spending a lot of time outside lately, which he loves. Just in the past month or so he has taken to swimming with water wings or a life jacket on and riding both a tricycle and bike with training wheels. He's also figured out how to do the fireman pole at the park and will climb and do "tricks" on most of the playground equipment. I think we will sign him up for a gymnastics class this fall.
He loves princesses. He also loves Spiderman. His favourite colours are pink, brown and black. He likes to play with balls, Hot Wheels cars, blocks, his doctor's kit, picnic basket, and Play-Doh. His fine motor skills are improving. He can write his name so that it's legible for someone who knows what they are looking at, he can also draw figures! People with huge heads, arms, legs and faces! So cute.
He loves being read to and has started asking us to teach him how to read. His favourite books right now are series --Bearenstain Bears, Charlie and Lola, Curious George, and Little Critter. He also likes fairy tales. He'll "read" books to himself, and has quite good letter recognition and letter/sound association, but cannot actually connect the sounds read. I have my doubts on whether he is actually ready, but we may pick up a few early phonics readers and I plan on scouring Pinterest for some fun sight word activities.
I've taken to letting the kids watch a show on my computer while I prepare their lunch. SuperWhy and Octonauts are The Bean's favourites. Paw Patrol is in there too but it's next to impossible to find on YouTube so he really only sees it when we're at Grandma and Grandpa's house. He's watched the movie Frozen (and loved it) and also Finding Nemo and The Lorax (which he also loved).
He sometimes gets "tablet time" in the mornings or on long car rides. He really enjoys many of the educational (and not-so-educational) apps we have downloaded for him. We usually set a timer that automatically turns it off so that he doesn't get upset with us for telling him it's time to stop.
He loves music. He'll often request certain songs to dance/ sing/ play instruments to. Luke Doucet's Long Haul Driver is still a favourite song. He knows most T&S songs off their most recent album and some of their older songs too (he's going to LOVE when we take him to their shows later this month). He's also a big Beatles fan, which I love. Yellow Submarine and I Want to Hold Your Hand are his favourite Beatles tunes. He, of course, likes the songs from Frozen and many of the celebrity songs from Sesame Street (thanks YouTube). He continues to make up his own songs, which I find adorable. I mean, who doesn't love a three year old singing "It's a hot dog day! It's a bun and ketchup day!" on the walk over to a barbeque at his cousins' house?
His memory and his attention to detail are incredible. He will bring up things that happened a year ago as if they were yesterday. I don't think he remembers much before the age of two, based solely on the fact that I ask him if he remembers before we had Sprout and he indicates that he doesn't. (He says he remembers her being in my tummy, but I'm doubtful.) He'll also talk about details of what someone said or did that I am often surprised he picked up on. Very observant.
A related quirk of his that we've noticed is that when we are driving he will bring up topics of conversation that we've discussed on previous trips by the places we're passing. For a while he always asked me to tell him the story of when I crashed my bicycle when we drove past a landmark on the way to Jen's office. He'll also confirm that he knows what places are as we pass them --the cemetery where my grandparents are buried, where he used to take swimming lessons, the railway tracks, etc.
Food continues to be a challenge. He is still quite picky but we've instituted a "you must try a bite of what we're having" rule at dinnertime which is helping ever so slightly. We've eliminated all animal dairy from his diet, including foods that contain dairy. He was having some pretty severe stomach/bowel issues of which dairy seems to have been the root, though we're not convinced that there isn't also another food sensitivity which we have yet to discover. It's tough. He's very good about asking if food has "cow milk" in it, but we know it slips in here and there and he pays the consequences.
No big update on the potty front. We had started putting him in a Pull-Up overnight, then stopped because they were mostly dry, then started again because he was wetting the bed. Most days he wakes up dry, but we're still putting him in the Pull-Ups. I guess we'll decide whether to continue once this bag runs out. (He mostly seems to wet the bed on nights when he is very tired.)
He's a pretty good sleeper. Ideally bedtime is 7:30pm, but realistically he's usually not asleep until 8:00 or 8:30pm. He typically wakes up around 6am, but surprises us by sleeping in until 7am on occasion. Every once in a while he'll fight and/or skip his nap (which he still very much needs), but usually goes down for about 2-3 hours in the afternoon. In fact, we often need to wake him up.
He's got a good group of people who love him and who he loves in return. Family, including extended family --grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, and others. Friends --many of ours, but a few of his own from daycare or the neighbourhood, or children of our friends.
Smart, active, expressive and loving. This kid keeps us busy, but of course, we wouldn't have it any other way. It's amazing quickly three and a half years have gone by, and at the same time how we cannot imagine our lives without him. We are so lucky to be his moms. So much love for our little guy.
Size wise I'd guess that he's a bit over 30lbs and three feet and a few inches tall. Clothes are anywhere from 24m-3T on top and 18m-2T on the bottom. I'm glad it's summer and the clothes he's wearing are short sleeved and legged. It makes dressing him easier. Maybe by the fall he'll have filled out a bit and the sizes that are long enough also fit around his middle. Shoes are size 7ish.
What he lacks in size he makes up for in personality. I never would have expected a child of ours to be so outgoing, but he is. He has his moments of shyness, especially when around people he hasn't seen for a while, but he warms up quickly. Then, well, he'll chat your ear off and isn't shy about telling you what he would like you to do with him. He waves to people from the shopping cart in the grocery store, asking them about what they're buying, or (more likely) telling them about his day. He says hello to pretty much every person we pass when we're out for walks and always seems a little heartbroken if they don't say hello back.
His vocabulary is impressive. He also has a way of saying things that seems precocious for a child his age. We often get comments about his language skills. We know he's advanced in this regard, but it's hard for us to recognize. Even with having taught kids this age, I can't really remember well enough to compare. Sometimes when he's upset he has a hard time getting started saying something and will stutter over the first syllable, but usually the words flow pretty easily.
Yes, he's a chatty little "people person." We've also noticed how much he wants to engage with us. Though he'll have periods of content solo play, he definitely prefers Jen or I playing with him. He can be pretty demanding about it, which is hard, because we cannot play with him all the time but we do not enjoy being yelled at. We've been working a lot on "asking nicely" and "tone of voice." Sometimes the reminders help, other times not so much. (They usually seem to help more when he is getting what he wants, and not work so well when he is not.) Alternately, he can also be incredibly sweet: cuddling, stroking our faces and giving compliments.
He is a pretty great big brother, we have, however, started to see some signs of jealousy. He used to say that he was going to pretend to be "Baby Blah" but now he'll just say that he's Sprout outright. He wants to be babied too. (Not that we really baby Sprout, but you know.) I think being home with me and Sprout full time has made this more of an issue, but he LOVES being home overall.
He usually wakes up with ideas about where he wants to go or what he wants to do that day. We typically do an outing in the morning --the zoo, the farm, The Science Centre, an indoor playground, a park, etc. In the afternoon we tend to stick closer to home, often playing in the yard or at a nearby park, though there were a few weeks when we were checking out splash pads on a regular basis.
So, yes, he is now home with me full time. I'm not sure how much I have said here already, but after our daycare provider went through radiation she came to us and asked how we felt about her taking the rest of the summer off. It was something we had discussed doing even if she had been feeling better, so we readily agreed. With nothing yet lined up for the fall, we've decided that he'll stay home with me and Sprout for the rest of the year unless I happen to get a full time job, in which case we'll place them both in daycare. (Hopefully the one he's been in, but we'll see if there are spaces available when/if that happens.)
The Bean is incredibly active. Jen and I joke that he doesn't know how to walk, that he can only run. He loves to play "sports", jump, climb, swing, slide, bike, scooter, swim, etc. We've been spending a lot of time outside lately, which he loves. Just in the past month or so he has taken to swimming with water wings or a life jacket on and riding both a tricycle and bike with training wheels. He's also figured out how to do the fireman pole at the park and will climb and do "tricks" on most of the playground equipment. I think we will sign him up for a gymnastics class this fall.
He loves princesses. He also loves Spiderman. His favourite colours are pink, brown and black. He likes to play with balls, Hot Wheels cars, blocks, his doctor's kit, picnic basket, and Play-Doh. His fine motor skills are improving. He can write his name so that it's legible for someone who knows what they are looking at, he can also draw figures! People with huge heads, arms, legs and faces! So cute.
He loves being read to and has started asking us to teach him how to read. His favourite books right now are series --Bearenstain Bears, Charlie and Lola, Curious George, and Little Critter. He also likes fairy tales. He'll "read" books to himself, and has quite good letter recognition and letter/sound association, but cannot actually connect the sounds read. I have my doubts on whether he is actually ready, but we may pick up a few early phonics readers and I plan on scouring Pinterest for some fun sight word activities.
I've taken to letting the kids watch a show on my computer while I prepare their lunch. SuperWhy and Octonauts are The Bean's favourites. Paw Patrol is in there too but it's next to impossible to find on YouTube so he really only sees it when we're at Grandma and Grandpa's house. He's watched the movie Frozen (and loved it) and also Finding Nemo and The Lorax (which he also loved).
He sometimes gets "tablet time" in the mornings or on long car rides. He really enjoys many of the educational (and not-so-educational) apps we have downloaded for him. We usually set a timer that automatically turns it off so that he doesn't get upset with us for telling him it's time to stop.
He loves music. He'll often request certain songs to dance/ sing/ play instruments to. Luke Doucet's Long Haul Driver is still a favourite song. He knows most T&S songs off their most recent album and some of their older songs too (he's going to LOVE when we take him to their shows later this month). He's also a big Beatles fan, which I love. Yellow Submarine and I Want to Hold Your Hand are his favourite Beatles tunes. He, of course, likes the songs from Frozen and many of the celebrity songs from Sesame Street (thanks YouTube). He continues to make up his own songs, which I find adorable. I mean, who doesn't love a three year old singing "It's a hot dog day! It's a bun and ketchup day!" on the walk over to a barbeque at his cousins' house?
His memory and his attention to detail are incredible. He will bring up things that happened a year ago as if they were yesterday. I don't think he remembers much before the age of two, based solely on the fact that I ask him if he remembers before we had Sprout and he indicates that he doesn't. (He says he remembers her being in my tummy, but I'm doubtful.) He'll also talk about details of what someone said or did that I am often surprised he picked up on. Very observant.
A related quirk of his that we've noticed is that when we are driving he will bring up topics of conversation that we've discussed on previous trips by the places we're passing. For a while he always asked me to tell him the story of when I crashed my bicycle when we drove past a landmark on the way to Jen's office. He'll also confirm that he knows what places are as we pass them --the cemetery where my grandparents are buried, where he used to take swimming lessons, the railway tracks, etc.
Food continues to be a challenge. He is still quite picky but we've instituted a "you must try a bite of what we're having" rule at dinnertime which is helping ever so slightly. We've eliminated all animal dairy from his diet, including foods that contain dairy. He was having some pretty severe stomach/bowel issues of which dairy seems to have been the root, though we're not convinced that there isn't also another food sensitivity which we have yet to discover. It's tough. He's very good about asking if food has "cow milk" in it, but we know it slips in here and there and he pays the consequences.
No big update on the potty front. We had started putting him in a Pull-Up overnight, then stopped because they were mostly dry, then started again because he was wetting the bed. Most days he wakes up dry, but we're still putting him in the Pull-Ups. I guess we'll decide whether to continue once this bag runs out. (He mostly seems to wet the bed on nights when he is very tired.)
He's a pretty good sleeper. Ideally bedtime is 7:30pm, but realistically he's usually not asleep until 8:00 or 8:30pm. He typically wakes up around 6am, but surprises us by sleeping in until 7am on occasion. Every once in a while he'll fight and/or skip his nap (which he still very much needs), but usually goes down for about 2-3 hours in the afternoon. In fact, we often need to wake him up.
He's got a good group of people who love him and who he loves in return. Family, including extended family --grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, and others. Friends --many of ours, but a few of his own from daycare or the neighbourhood, or children of our friends.
Smart, active, expressive and loving. This kid keeps us busy, but of course, we wouldn't have it any other way. It's amazing quickly three and a half years have gone by, and at the same time how we cannot imagine our lives without him. We are so lucky to be his moms. So much love for our little guy.
Monday, March 24, 2014
Sprout is Fifteen Months Old!
Today Sprout is Fifteen Months Old!
The past month has been a busy one, but a fun one. Our little girl is ever so loving and cuddly, but also fiercely independent. The more she's able to do on her own, the more she's been showing us this side of her personality. I dare say I see a bit of myself in her.
-She is quite mobile now. Walking wobbly, rarely crawling. She "runs" when she is excited, most notably when Mommy and The Bean get home at the end of the day. (Usually accompanied by shrieks of joy!) She likes to jump, but has yet to get her feet off the ground. But what I really need to mention here is the climbing. This girl is a climber! Beds, couch, chairs, ottoman, you name it, she climbs it. Fearlessly, I might add. We've had to move some furniture around, mostly so she won't climb onto the dining room table when I have my back turned. I'm both excited and nervous to take her to the playground once the weather warms up.
-She has many, many words now some more established than others. Hair, head, eyes, nose, mouth, ears, arms, hand, bum bum, poo, hat, shoe, boot, jacket, out, home, up, down, Mama, Mum Mum (what she calls Jen), The Bean's name and nickname, Aunt Jen (my sister), Mo (our cat), cat, dog, a variety of animal noises, cheese, nana (banana), water, ball, dance, and a few that I'm sure I'm forgetting. Moreover she understands so much. I find it so amazing. I also wonder at how long she has understood so much, because just in the past few months she's been demonstrating understanding, but I'm sure she understood many things long before she could do this. I'm not the only one who's impressed by this sort of thing, right?
-She has really been keen on going out lately. If I ask her if she wants to go out she'll head straight over to the front hall to get her outdoor clothes on. I have to be mindful not to say anything to her too long before I'm ready to go out because she's not very patient! It'll be so nice once the weather warms up and it's not such an ordeal to get ready to go outside.
-Jen took her out for her first tricycle ride, and she seemed to enjoy it. She also likes playing with balls, dancing, and climbing and sliding down the curvy board, climbing up and down stairs, helping me vacuum, and playing in the toy kitchen.
-She's pretty into colouring. We set her up with paper and markers in the highchair and she goes to town. We've also done finger painting this way, which she enjoyed, but the clean up is too much for me to make it a regular thing. We have window crayons that she and The Bean have been having a blast colouring with too. Other fine motor skills have included the ring stacker (though not in order) and the pop-up bugs where she has to work buttons/switches/turn knobs to make them jump up. She's plays with the doctor's kit.
-She's a good helper. She likes to brush her teeth and hair (or other peoples!), try to dress herself and feed herself. She wipes her hands, face and high chair tray if given a cloth. She will vacuum with her toy vacuum along side me with our real vacuum. She sort of gets tidying up and will often throw things (her diapers, for example) into the garbage when asked.
-And books. The girl LOVES books. She would happily pull every single book we have off the shelf and have me read them to her. She has favourites --B is for Bear, Builder Goose, Goodnight Moon, and The More We Get Together stand out from this past month. Her attention span isn't terribly long, so I tend to pick shorter stories for her, but boy, does she love being read to. I love it when she walks over with a book and plunks herself down in my lap.
-One of my favourite times of day with her right now is when she wakes up from her nap. She loves to roll around on the bed. She's super silly and will sit up and then flop down and grin at me. She thinks it's hilarious if I mimic her behaviour. It's adorable.
-She's still big on nursing. She nurses when she wakes up in the morning (recently around 4am) off and on until we get out of bed between 6 and 7am and before and after naps as well as before bed. She's between one nap and two right now. With The Bean home it was easier to have her just do an earlier afternoon nap and we've been sticking with that, even though she's super-tired by the time noon/nap time rolls around. I dunno, I may try two naps again tomorrow and see how she does. I'm a little up in the air over what's best for her right now.
-Eating has been going well, but the past few weeks her teeth have really been bothering her so she's been a little fussier than usual about what foods she wants. Mostly she just wants soft foods. She did break a tooth (bottom right lateral incisor) on the 17th, but I can see that her molars are not too far off. Poor babe. One in particular looks awful --bumpy, blistered, and bruised.
-Sleep is pretty good. I already mentioned that we're between one and two naps a day. Bedtime takes a while, but she's usually asleep by 8pm. Sometimes she wakes up a few times overnight, but is mostly good about putting herself back down. "Morning" comes at about 4am, but we stay in bed a few hours longer than that. (Thank goodness.)
I'm sure there are many, many more things I could say about this girl, but I'm going to stop here. Hopefully I'll be able to talk about how much she loves playing outside next month's update... we're still in winter-mode here and all ready for some sunshine.
The past month has been a busy one, but a fun one. Our little girl is ever so loving and cuddly, but also fiercely independent. The more she's able to do on her own, the more she's been showing us this side of her personality. I dare say I see a bit of myself in her.
-She is quite mobile now. Walking wobbly, rarely crawling. She "runs" when she is excited, most notably when Mommy and The Bean get home at the end of the day. (Usually accompanied by shrieks of joy!) She likes to jump, but has yet to get her feet off the ground. But what I really need to mention here is the climbing. This girl is a climber! Beds, couch, chairs, ottoman, you name it, she climbs it. Fearlessly, I might add. We've had to move some furniture around, mostly so she won't climb onto the dining room table when I have my back turned. I'm both excited and nervous to take her to the playground once the weather warms up.
-She has many, many words now some more established than others. Hair, head, eyes, nose, mouth, ears, arms, hand, bum bum, poo, hat, shoe, boot, jacket, out, home, up, down, Mama, Mum Mum (what she calls Jen), The Bean's name and nickname, Aunt Jen (my sister), Mo (our cat), cat, dog, a variety of animal noises, cheese, nana (banana), water, ball, dance, and a few that I'm sure I'm forgetting. Moreover she understands so much. I find it so amazing. I also wonder at how long she has understood so much, because just in the past few months she's been demonstrating understanding, but I'm sure she understood many things long before she could do this. I'm not the only one who's impressed by this sort of thing, right?
-She has really been keen on going out lately. If I ask her if she wants to go out she'll head straight over to the front hall to get her outdoor clothes on. I have to be mindful not to say anything to her too long before I'm ready to go out because she's not very patient! It'll be so nice once the weather warms up and it's not such an ordeal to get ready to go outside.
-Jen took her out for her first tricycle ride, and she seemed to enjoy it. She also likes playing with balls, dancing, and climbing and sliding down the curvy board, climbing up and down stairs, helping me vacuum, and playing in the toy kitchen.
-She's pretty into colouring. We set her up with paper and markers in the highchair and she goes to town. We've also done finger painting this way, which she enjoyed, but the clean up is too much for me to make it a regular thing. We have window crayons that she and The Bean have been having a blast colouring with too. Other fine motor skills have included the ring stacker (though not in order) and the pop-up bugs where she has to work buttons/switches/turn knobs to make them jump up. She's plays with the doctor's kit.
-She's a good helper. She likes to brush her teeth and hair (or other peoples!), try to dress herself and feed herself. She wipes her hands, face and high chair tray if given a cloth. She will vacuum with her toy vacuum along side me with our real vacuum. She sort of gets tidying up and will often throw things (her diapers, for example) into the garbage when asked.
-And books. The girl LOVES books. She would happily pull every single book we have off the shelf and have me read them to her. She has favourites --B is for Bear, Builder Goose, Goodnight Moon, and The More We Get Together stand out from this past month. Her attention span isn't terribly long, so I tend to pick shorter stories for her, but boy, does she love being read to. I love it when she walks over with a book and plunks herself down in my lap.
-One of my favourite times of day with her right now is when she wakes up from her nap. She loves to roll around on the bed. She's super silly and will sit up and then flop down and grin at me. She thinks it's hilarious if I mimic her behaviour. It's adorable.
-She's still big on nursing. She nurses when she wakes up in the morning (recently around 4am) off and on until we get out of bed between 6 and 7am and before and after naps as well as before bed. She's between one nap and two right now. With The Bean home it was easier to have her just do an earlier afternoon nap and we've been sticking with that, even though she's super-tired by the time noon/nap time rolls around. I dunno, I may try two naps again tomorrow and see how she does. I'm a little up in the air over what's best for her right now.
-Eating has been going well, but the past few weeks her teeth have really been bothering her so she's been a little fussier than usual about what foods she wants. Mostly she just wants soft foods. She did break a tooth (bottom right lateral incisor) on the 17th, but I can see that her molars are not too far off. Poor babe. One in particular looks awful --bumpy, blistered, and bruised.
-Sleep is pretty good. I already mentioned that we're between one and two naps a day. Bedtime takes a while, but she's usually asleep by 8pm. Sometimes she wakes up a few times overnight, but is mostly good about putting herself back down. "Morning" comes at about 4am, but we stay in bed a few hours longer than that. (Thank goodness.)
I'm sure there are many, many more things I could say about this girl, but I'm going to stop here. Hopefully I'll be able to talk about how much she loves playing outside next month's update... we're still in winter-mode here and all ready for some sunshine.
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Sprout is Thirteen Months Old!
Today Sprout is Thirteen Months Old!
Okay, so she's not thirteen months old today, but going on ten days ago... I did actually take her photo on the 24th, but the writing, well it just didn't happen until a few days ago, and the posting, well that's just happening now. It's been busy here, I suppose.
What an amazing difference a year makes! Last year we were just getting to know our daughter. Soaking in all her lovely newborn-ness. Trying to figure out ourselves as a family of four and now... well now we cannot imagine our family any other way. We have two increasingly-active children who are so wonderful and bring us so much joy, and who happily seem to adore one another. That makes us happier than anything.
-This month Sprout decided it was time to start walking in earnest. She took her first unassisted step, and then two, and then three... and now she's walking across the room. Still a little unsteady, but fiercely determined! This girl has places to go and has decided that walking is how she's going to get there!
-Next: talking. She's quite a little chatterbox these days. She added the phrase "ni ni" (night night) into her vocabulary. I was floored one evening when I was nursing her, and she unlatched looked and me and said it --clearly meaning "I am done nursing now. Rock me night night." So I did. I mean, that's what you do when your kid makes a request like that, right? She now says night night pretty much every time she's going to sleep and when she's being silly and putting her head down pretending to sleep. She says "bye bye". And also "eyes" and "nose" and she even can point to them pretty accurately, along with her belly. She sometimes finds her mouth, ears, hair/head, hands and feet. She says her brother's name. And I swear she has copied me saying some pretty amazing words like "alligator." (Jen didn't believe me either, but then Sprout said it for her.)
-Along with walking she is climbing everything. Totally dangerous in our not-so-baby-proof house. She's fallen many times but never walked away with more than a bump, thank goodness.
-This month she has gotten really into books. She will pick one she wants and bring it over to either me or Jen, often crawling her way into our laps while we read to her. (Yes, we love it.) Her favourites seem to be interactive books (touch and feel, lift the flap, and the like --Dear Zoo and Where Is Baby's Belly Button come to mind). She likes to turn the pages really quickly.
-Her favourite toys are balls, the tunnel and ride on toys. Nothing new there really.
-No big change on the eating front. We're into a pretty regular breakfast routine now, where she eats her rice cereal while me and The Bean eat our breakfasts. She often demands that we share cereal with her. I don't love that she's eating Cheerios and Honeycombs, but it could be worse. She's getting pretty good with finger foods now and will often have little bites of our meals --veggies, fish, etc.
-Unfortunately there hasn't been any big change on the sleep front either. We had gotten her on a bit of a better overnight schedule, but then Jen went away and it went back to where it had been or worse maybe. We're still working on it.
-We had her twelve month check up earlier in January. She hardly gained any weight since her 9 month check (21.9lbs to 22.1lbs), but had grown two inches (now 30.9in). I believe that puts her around 84th percentile for weight and 93rd for height. I find it interesting that our two kids are on such opposite ends of the spectrum (though both seem to be averaging out ever so slightly).
And, I guess those are the big updates. I love this age and look forward to the next few months as she continues to expand her ability to communicate and otherwise navigate her way through the world. And of course, we just love her, no matter what age or stage she is at.
Okay, so she's not thirteen months old today, but going on ten days ago... I did actually take her photo on the 24th, but the writing, well it just didn't happen until a few days ago, and the posting, well that's just happening now. It's been busy here, I suppose.
What an amazing difference a year makes! Last year we were just getting to know our daughter. Soaking in all her lovely newborn-ness. Trying to figure out ourselves as a family of four and now... well now we cannot imagine our family any other way. We have two increasingly-active children who are so wonderful and bring us so much joy, and who happily seem to adore one another. That makes us happier than anything.
-This month Sprout decided it was time to start walking in earnest. She took her first unassisted step, and then two, and then three... and now she's walking across the room. Still a little unsteady, but fiercely determined! This girl has places to go and has decided that walking is how she's going to get there!
-Next: talking. She's quite a little chatterbox these days. She added the phrase "ni ni" (night night) into her vocabulary. I was floored one evening when I was nursing her, and she unlatched looked and me and said it --clearly meaning "I am done nursing now. Rock me night night." So I did. I mean, that's what you do when your kid makes a request like that, right? She now says night night pretty much every time she's going to sleep and when she's being silly and putting her head down pretending to sleep. She says "bye bye". And also "eyes" and "nose" and she even can point to them pretty accurately, along with her belly. She sometimes finds her mouth, ears, hair/head, hands and feet. She says her brother's name. And I swear she has copied me saying some pretty amazing words like "alligator." (Jen didn't believe me either, but then Sprout said it for her.)
-Along with walking she is climbing everything. Totally dangerous in our not-so-baby-proof house. She's fallen many times but never walked away with more than a bump, thank goodness.
-This month she has gotten really into books. She will pick one she wants and bring it over to either me or Jen, often crawling her way into our laps while we read to her. (Yes, we love it.) Her favourites seem to be interactive books (touch and feel, lift the flap, and the like --Dear Zoo and Where Is Baby's Belly Button come to mind). She likes to turn the pages really quickly.
-Her favourite toys are balls, the tunnel and ride on toys. Nothing new there really.
-No big change on the eating front. We're into a pretty regular breakfast routine now, where she eats her rice cereal while me and The Bean eat our breakfasts. She often demands that we share cereal with her. I don't love that she's eating Cheerios and Honeycombs, but it could be worse. She's getting pretty good with finger foods now and will often have little bites of our meals --veggies, fish, etc.
-Unfortunately there hasn't been any big change on the sleep front either. We had gotten her on a bit of a better overnight schedule, but then Jen went away and it went back to where it had been or worse maybe. We're still working on it.
-We had her twelve month check up earlier in January. She hardly gained any weight since her 9 month check (21.9lbs to 22.1lbs), but had grown two inches (now 30.9in). I believe that puts her around 84th percentile for weight and 93rd for height. I find it interesting that our two kids are on such opposite ends of the spectrum (though both seem to be averaging out ever so slightly).
And, I guess those are the big updates. I love this age and look forward to the next few months as she continues to expand her ability to communicate and otherwise navigate her way through the world. And of course, we just love her, no matter what age or stage she is at.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
