Kidding
SuperBoy is 2 years old. I cannot imagine life without him. We celebrated with a small party of his three best friends and his little cousins–and a few of his big people friends. I made delicious agave sweetened dairy free cupcakes. Num! In celebration of his first birthday, I wrote this post {5 Changes in the Last Year}. I’ve learned even more about parenting, SuperBoy, and myself in the last year. They can be summed up in these 10 lessons: 1) I’ve learned that parenting is a continually changing experience. Some days you love it. Some days you hate it. Some days you want to move and leave no forwarding address. Most days your heart is full of love. And, once a parent, always a parent. 2) I’ve learned that if you approach parenting as a job that you want measurable results in and earn high review ratings at, you’re in for a sorry surprise. If you hope for a smooch from a toddler and a smile from a baby, you have a better chance at satisfaction. 3) I’ve learned that two children are better than one. And to watch your elder child share love with the younger is precious beyond measure. 4) I’ve learned that it’s better to understand SuperBoy’s moods than to try to control them. 5) I’ve learned that SuperBoy is a very gentle soul who is passionate about small things, like baseball cards and dates stuffed with walnuts. 6) I’ve learned that he prefers showering with his Dada…
Read More
Do you have a newish baby? Is this your first? Are you finding that after about 2 weeks, suddenly your little angel finds a screaming tone, a crying hue, a little bit of the ability to drive you to despair? I had forgotten this phase, but certainly remembered and rediscovered it with SweetPea. She’s a remarkably calm and easy going baby, way more so than SuperBoy at her age (and I thought he was easy). But every now and then she SCREAMS and it is terrifying. Run through the list: Hungry? (remember babies can cluster feed so if you feel like you just nursed or gave a bottle, she could be hungry again) Burp? (see here for my post on how to get those burps out {Burp Up}) Diaper? (these also happen more frequently than one would think)–if these are all checked off the list, go for the big one: Baby is tired. This is the number one reason I’ve found infants go bah-zurk. I mean like screaming like you’re cutting them. I mean like the neighbors think you ARE cutting them. Small babies have limited communication tools. Pretty much, their voice is it. Your baby can be hit with the fatigue bomb anytime during the day–this isn’t just a night fussy thing. (We generally don’t start shaping sleep patterns until after three months, as babies just nap in the sling, or swing, and snuggle up anywhere to take a snooze when they’re little.) Try to watch for the signs–fussing,…
Read More
SweetPea is almost 10 weeks old, and we’re finally getting to the bottom of her food sensitivities. I wrote about my elimination diet a few weeks back here {Elimination Diet: SweetPea Protests Something in My Breastmilk}, and have written on our son’s eczema here {Dry Winter Skin} and here {Infant Eczem: The Scourge of Winter} and about his allergies here {What Do You Do When You Find Out Your Toddler Has a Peanut Allergy}. SuperBoy is also allergic to eggs, but I’ll write about that separately. After following a strict elimination diet that meant I ate chicken, fruit, veggies, Udi’s gluten-free granola, and a variety of rice products, and then carefully and watchfully reintroducing foods one at a time, we know the culprit. Not to draw it out, but to clarify, she had a terrible rash and open, oozy sores on her face, neck, and chest. This was not a question of whether or not her nighttime fussies were food related. This was watching my daughter’s face transform from what was beyond painful to clear in a matter of two weeks, with notable improvements in the first week. Corn. That’s what brought back the rash. Corn. And I had been eating lots of organic blue corn chips (my fav) with sharp cheddar melted on top. Lunch, anyone? Add avocado and it’s practically a health nut salad 🙂 So, moral of the story: do a clean diet if you want to learn with accuracy. I would have guessed traces of dairy, but only by reintroducing…
Read More
We all caught a cold. This is always what happens when my son plays with other kids (as all children are disease vectors, right?). But to keep him away from everyone because someone has a runny nose? Not worth it. I didn’t figure that SweetPea and I would get sick too, but that, also, is a no-brainer. Can you tell what I do when I’m in bed with her? Knit, read, and work on my laptop? Guilty. She’s a mere nine weeks old and so I really hate to see her congested, and snorting when she nurses. Thankfully I am nursing so at least she can get some antibodies from me, since she probably got the virus from me! After consulting doctor google, and my own med staff, here’s my brief assessment of how to help your congested nursing little one. Please add what you’ve found to be helpful! 1) Nurse nurse nurse. Your breastmilk has the best medicine in it. Try to offer nursing as much as you can, especially if baby is having trouble staying latched due to congestion. Breastmilk has healing amazing qualities (insert all the medical benefits of breastmilk here). 2) Vaporizer. Warm misting vaporizer can help clear baby’s passage ways. These can also be bacterial breeding grounds. So when you use it, clean it out and don’t let water sit in it for too long. Also, best to use if baby is in the room with you. It will spray mist, so don’t put it…
Read More
This feels like a confessional diary entry: Dear Diary, I lost it with my toddler today. Here’s to hoping tomorrow’s better! My little SuperBoy is as perfect as they come: he’s patient, sweet, listens well, plays well, and has never been nasty to his 8 week old baby sister. But even the perfect do fail, right? Or rather, behave like normal 23 month olds. I am far from a perfect mother. And having two children seems to have exacerbated my imperfections. Whereas with one child you can kind of always keep your cool, and respond to their needs in a calm and rational fashion, even when the needs involve irrational behavior, with two this task becomes impossible on occasion and difficult on a regular basis. 1) Case study. I’ve just gotten the babe to sleep happily in the sling while doing housework, and SuperBoy awakens from his nap full-bore and letting the world (and neighborhood) know that he’s AWAKE and wants out of his bedroom NOW. I traipse upstairs with SweetPea on my chest and approach SuperBoy’s room. I let him know I hear him, but that I need to put his sister down before getting him up and changing his diaper. He doesn’t like this and cries even harder. So I take her out of the wrap, lay her on the floor bed we have in his room, and go to his crib (yes, he’s still imprisoned in a crib) and talk to him. Reasoning doesn’t abate the tears,…
Read More
I’m not a diet person. I have poor self-control when it comes to food, especially when my mom’s chocolate chip cookies or caramels are around. But I’ve never been so motivated in my life (not even during Lent, sorry, Jesus, as we Catholics give up sweets usually) than I am now. It’s every mama’s nightmare. My baby’s beautiful skin has turned into a scaley, puss-laced, acne-ridden, and bright red mess. At first I thought SweetPea was simply having normal baby acne. But after a few days, I realized this had to be worse. Her skin looked abraised, and her acne opened into yellow crusty scabs. What on earth was going on here? This photo barely shows her poor little cheeks, but you can kinda see it. It started on her face and moved to her neck, chest, and back. She’s so sad looking! Fortunately, our doctor is a family practice doc who practices in an integrative medical model. She took a look and suggested we initially tackle it as a food allergy as that is what it looked like to her. Her suggested elimination diet was something I was totally unfamiliar with, but now know all too well. She told me I could do it a little at a time, like just dairy and gluten, or tackle all seven food products at once. I definitely opted for the most extreme version of the diet, basically because I want to just get. it. DONE. 1) It’s been a week since I’ve…
Read More