Monday, February 28, 2011

Play day at the park

Ok...

I'll admit it.

C and D don't play at the park as often as they should.

It was easier when we lived in the apartment since the complex had its' own mini playground. But now we are in a house with a huge backyard and no swing set as of yet. And there is only so much driving the pink Cadillac or tossing of a football one can do before it gets pretty boring.

So on the rare occasion that I actually have the car (we are down to one car right now), the boys and I try to make it out to a nearby park just to stretch our legs and test our climbing skills.


C decided that he was King of the Slides


D loved going down the slides... and even tries to climb back up

C loved being able to climb without being told no

And D loved running around with the other little boys and girls at the playground 


C spent some time on the swings and absolutely loved it


And D just stuck to the jungle gym

But, all in all, the boys had the most fun just playing together in the sunshine.


A Lazy Weekend

This weekend wasn't anything out of the ordinary. The weatherman on the news said that the weather was going to be pretty nasty (even a chance of snow!) so we didn't make any plans to go out.

C had a slight fever for two days. The only other symptoms that he had were fatigue and a runny nose. The fatigue didn't last long and he only woke up with the runny nose. So I've decided that it is all part in parcel with his teething.

Kel tweaked his knee during his football game on Saturday. Luckily the MRI he had on the 13th didn't show that he needed to have surgery and rehab would be his best option. Unfortunately, our insurance switches this week so he'll need to have a second opinion and a new referral for the physical therapy. Now if only I could get him to stop playing for a season or two to give his knee a rest.

D and I made a quick trip to Target on Saturday night and apparently missed the once in a lifetime snow that we got in my city. Oh well maybe next time. D was so cute in the store, charming all the workers. He even charmed himself into a new car for being so good while we shopped for some infant Advil for C's fever. We went home to a good dinner, some time with Toy Story 3 on the Xbox, fun books, and a cozy bed.


Sunday's weather was beautiful. So crisp and clean after the rain. Makes one want to be outside. Which we did, but I didn't want to be out to long in case C's fever was more than just teething. So we made a trip to Toys 'R Us. I think this was the first time that C has ever been there. His face just lit up and he had a hard time taking it all in. I think we made about four trips around the store before he finally picked out some Dino cars that he can play with in garden  dirt . D got the army men from Toy Story 3 that you can pull their string and they will move. The point of our mission to Toys 'R Us was to get something for the boys to play in the backyard so we also got an Air Cube that we can toss around in the backyard.


 Can you see that C is still a little pink in the face? This is day three so it's good that we didn't do much.

Friday, February 25, 2011

Is He Sick or Is He Teething, That Is The Question

Today my Buggy was NOT feeling well. The only thing that set me off that something might be wrong was that he was super sleepy over the past two days and extra cuddly.

I mean he stayed in my lap for over an hour without trying to get up.

And took not one, but two three hour naps.

And still went to bed early at 7:30.



What sixteen month old does that?


So I took his temperature and it read 99.8. Not too high, but this is the first fever that he's had in a year. He's been my healthy baby (D has had to many ear infections to mention) so this was a surprise for me. He took his naps and each time woke up with bright red cheeks that stayed that way for about two hours from when he woke up. It was like someone had slapped him repeatedly.


So we spent the day indoors ( a hard thing for C but made necessary by his fever and the rain) snuggling, reading books, making forts, playing with D, and watching a few of his favorite shows. Hopefully tomorrow he'll be back to his normal self.




Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Sweet Sixteen




Happy Sweet Sixteen (months) Buggy! 

My, how time flies when we are having fun.

Weight: 25-26 lbs (he stepped on the scale at home)
Length: He's been too active for me to measure :)
Teeth: 
  • Just got his third bottom tooth for a grand total of seven teeth. 
  • Still no molars. 
  • Is currently drooling up a storm so we may see more soon.


Sleep: 
  • Still has two naps during the day that last anywhere from one to three hours
  • Sleeps from 8:00 P.M. to 7:00 A.M 
  • Loves falling asleep with a sippy cup of milk, a soft blanket, and his Elmo.


Eating: 
  • C has seemed to slow down in his eating. 
  • Still willing to try new foods, even if he doesn't finish a complete bite if he doesn't like it. 
  • Tends to throw more food on the floor than put in his mouth. 
  • Loves hot dogs, cheese puffs, apples, bananas, Gerber Graduate Meals, grilled cheese, and chicken nuggets.
  • Doesn't care for anything too sweet, apple juice, quesadillas, peanut butter, and pineapple. 

Talking: 
  • C is sort of a quiet baby(unless he misses a nap). 
  • He babbles and grunts, but he's more content being the observer. 
  • Can now say Mama, Dada, D's name, all done, and uh oh. 
  • He's currently working on ba (ball), uh (up),  mo (more). 

Dislikes: 
  • The word no. Caiden now understands what that word means.I'm trying to do better at redirecting him but I can't help but admit he's pretty cute when he throws his "mini tantrums". D has taught him a few tricks in that area. 

  • C also dislikes being inside on a nice day (he'll pound on the door till you open it), 

  • socks (he's my boy) 


Loves:  
  • C loves to be outside. If I'd let him skip meals and naps then he would spend all day outside. His favorite things are playing ball and riding in his car. 

  • C also loves to climb. He has turned into quite the monkey and his favorite is to climb on top of our glass kitchen table and the fireplace.

  • C loves to be with D. Even if they are fighting over toys, it's not to long before they've made each other dissolve into giggles. It's really quite amusing to watch. 


New things: 
  • C is getting better at using his big boy utensils. He'd rather use a fork or spoon than his fingers, a cup rather than a sippy cup, and a plate rather than his high chair tray. 

  • He has also learned the fine art of running. I can't believe how fast he has gotten! Sometimes, he likes to run with his hands clasped behind his back and his butt sticking out so he sort of looks like a chicken. 

  • C loves to sit on the potty. I think he might be potty trained before D is.



  • The other day, C discovered the world of drawing. He loves to sit with the Magna Doodle and just scribble. 




My Darling Boy, I am so happy to be your mommy.  


Monday, February 21, 2011

Potty Woes

When I first became pregnant with D, I knew that potty training was not a stage that I was looking forward to. Everyone has said that boys are harder to train than girls and I think I took that to heart. I was more than content to let D stay in diapers, and probably found excuses to leave him in that stage.

The first excuse came with his second birthday. At this time, D was having problems with his speech and we were in the process of having him evaluated for Head Start. Well, he qualified for speech, occupational, and behavior therapy and we found out that we was delayed anywhere from 6 to 8 months in all of his developmental milestones. So D wasn't ready for potty training because he couldn't communicate his need to use the bathroom.




The second excuse came with my pregnancy with C. When we first started D's aggressive therapies, I was 20 weeks pregnant with C and working full time. I had a history of high blood pressure with my pregnancy with D so I was also having more doctor's appointments. At 29 weeks I was placed on strict bed rest (even though I didn't follow doctor's orders on Wednesdays) and started my NST tests twice a week. Dylan's three separate therapy sessions were thrown in there as well.  So D wasn't ready for potty training because I just didn't have the time or energy to tackle this monumental task with him.



The third excuse came with the birth of C and trying to adjust our lives to being a family of four. Every book that I've read said to not push potty training when something is about to change in the toddler's life. The arrival of a little brother was a huge change for D so I decided to wait until he adjusted before we revisited the potty. So D wasn't ready for potty training because C was born and he needed to adjust to life as a big brother before he could tackle the potty.

So three excuses (and probably many others) as to why my 3 1/2 year old is still contently wearing diapers. Three excuses that I no longer feel are valid. I can sit here and think of the should haves, but I just want D to use his potty. Any potty ( he has two).

We've been trying to brooch the topic for six months now and each time D will wait until a diaper or pull up is put back on before he'll go to the bathroom. I've tried the bribes, the "sink the Cheerios", the potty timer, and letting him run around naked to no avail. I think I'm at the point were if something doesn't give soon (i.e. his complete stubbornness at not using the potty) I'm just going to put it on the back burner for a bit. I know being home, I should have "all the time in the world" (thanks Babe) and that I am more stubborn than D is, but really I am tired of the fight. I'm tired of the constant struggle to get him to actually sit on his potty for more than thirty seconds and I'm tired of the nag I've become thinking that if I ask him every twenty minutes if he has to go, he'll actually answer yes. Instead I get, "Not today, Mom, I'm busy." So no more asking.




My Mommy instinct is telling me that he'll tell me when he's ready. That rather than forcing the issue on him, one day he'll tell me that he's done with the "itchies" associated with his dirty diaper and is ready to use the potty. While I am praying that it'll be before he turns four in June, I am ok if it takes longer. No, I won't completely stop (because seriously I am really tired of changing man-size poop) but it's time to take a different approach.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Afraid

Do you remember being afraid of something as a kid? The Bogeyman in the closet, a monster under your bed, or something hiding in the shadows? For me, it was husky dogs and spiders. I was always afraid that the husky dogs from around the corner were going to come in the night and drag me away. Or that spiders were going to eat me. So instead of being rational and staying in my top bunk, I slept on the floor for a year in my Little Mermaid sleeping bag thinking that it was the safest place for me. My only other option was the bottom bunk but big sister didn't want to share and she was the oldest. So for a year I slept on our uncomfortable floor and clutched my pillow telling myself that I was safe and nothing can get me if I have the solid floor beneath me. My dad finally had to take apart the bunk beds, otherwise who knows how long I would have slept on the floor.

My D is afraid. How or when or why he became afraid is beyond me, but D is afraid of the dark. It breaks my heart to hear him start screaming at night, when I've put him back in his own bed, in his own room, and the lights have been turned off for the night. We've tried talking to him to see what has him so terrified, and the times that he's actually answered he's said it's the robots. Robots? Since when has he seen scary robots? The only robot that I can think that he's seen is Plex from Yo Gabba Gabba...


Does he look so scary to you? He doesn't to me, and D even asks to watch him when the show comes on. So I don't think it was this robot that made him scared. So while I'm trying to figure out what has scared my child, I need to figure out how I can help him overcome it. Or at least learn to push it aside so he can sleep in his own bed.

First D and I set up a routine. After he was ready for bed, we would look in both sides of the closet, under C's crib, and in between his bed and the closet just to make sure that there were no robots for me to "hick in the face". When D was satisfied that there were no robots in the room, we said our good-nights,  gave our kisses, and I shut the door just enough so the hall light wouldn't bother C. However, I wouldn't make it to the living room for more than two minutes before the screaming began. Strike One.

Next we tried the Leapster Explorer that he got for Christmas from Gigi. While the bright light from the screen helped him, it also kept him awake because he was playing and therefore threw off our entire bedtime schedule that we had. So this was a no go. Strike Two.



Then we tried to let him fall asleep in our bed, with him knowing that once K and I are ready for bed he will be moved to his own room with C. Excuse my french, but that was a night from Hell. He woke up several times screaming his heart out until we brought him back to our bed. So this just brought us right back to where we started...



with him in our bed and a beating every night since he is NOT a peaceful sleeper. Strike Three.

After the first few nights of trying to get him in his bed after he had fallen asleep in mine, I am not ashamed to admit that K and I just left him in our bed. It's about the only way we... ok D can get a full nights sleep, which is what D absolutely needs in order to make it through the day. It's been our solution for the past two months (I'm not taking in to account the three months prior when D HAD to sleep with us because that was our only option).

So tonight while at Wal-Mart I showed him a night light. I talked to him about how he could have it in bed with him (it was portable) and whenever he got scared he could just press the little circle and his Blue Man would light up so he could see. He understood the concept and actually seemed interested in getting it so that he could sleep in his own bed so I bought it.


Please, please, PLEASE Blue Man be enough light to chase the robots away so my baby can get some sleep in his OWN bed. Crossing my fingers for a peaceful night...

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Injury Prone

Kel loves football. If football was on television 24/7, 365 days a year Kel would be in heaven. If he's not watching it, then he's playing it. If he's not playing it, then he's talking about it. If he's not talking about it, then he's looking it up on the Internet. Catch my drift?

For about four years now, Kel has been playing on a flag football team called Injury Prone. He started out as a wide receiver, but due to an ongoing knee condition he has had to switch to quarterback. I can know say that I'm dating the quarterback of the football team ;) As quarterback, Kel has taken his team to five championships and they won three of them, with two of those being back to back.

Normally me and the boys don't get to go watch Kelly play. But today, we decided that we weren't going to take no for an answer. So we packed up and headed to a park in Pasadena. This weekend probably wasn't the best weekend to insist that we go. It was getting really cold (we are due for some rain) and there was a Frisbee Golf tournament going on (who plays Frisbee Golf!?!?), so it was a struggle for C to stay out of everyone's way and warm. But it was nice to finally go and take some updated pictures. The team had to forfeit the game due to scheduling conflicts, but they were still good sports about it and played for fun.


Here's my star quarterback

Here are my comfy cozy boys


Touchdown!



 D just wanted to hang out with Daddy


While C had fun in his chair



D was super cute today


 He tried to help me with an antsy C


 Putting their heads together trying to figure out how to stay busy.


 D stayed with the team...




While C explored.



Even though they ended up losing today, it was still fun to come out and watch!