This week it was actually a Wednesday with Lola.
I only took one photo.
We met a girl I knew in college who has recently moved to Portland for lunch in the Pearl.
Baby girl sat for 2 hours while my friend and I chatted.
2 HOURS!
In a high chair.
She was amazing.
Besides the 3 or 4 sugar packets that she poured out all over the table and the crayons on the floor she was an absolute angel.
She was just one of the girls out for lunch.
It was fun.
home is…lunch with the girls.
…there is a Whole Foods with a plethora of gluten free products.
Not to mention the Trader Joe’s.
home is…living in the ‘burbs.
This funny little thing is showing up all over our house these days.
No, we are not potty training.
Baby girl figured out how useful a stool is for a toddler and started using one at Meme and Topher’s house in Colorado.
When we got home she quickly learned how to pick up and carry this “potty stool” all over the house.
She brings it in the kitchen to stand next to me while I do dishes or make a meal.
She uses it to climb up on the big stools at the breakfast bar.
She uses it for things I didn’t know you would need to use a stool for…just because she can.
We also have one in the kids bathroom upstairs.
She carries that one all over, too.
It’s adorable…
When you’re not tripping over it in unexpected places.
home is…baby girl trying to be so big.
I haven’t written a milestones post in 6 months.
It seems that everyday there is something new and I want to try to make a point of writing milestones posts for the kids on a more regular basis.
Today we saw the pediatrician for baby girls 18 month well visit.
Here are the official stats:
Weight: 24 lbs 2 oz (47th percentile)
Height: 31 inches (27th percentile)
She received her 1st MMR vaccine today as there has been an outbreak of Measles in the Portland/Vancouver area in the last month. Our pediatrician, who follows a modified immunization schedule as written about in The Vaccine Book by Dr. Robert Sears (and usually puts of the 1st MMR vaccine until after age 2) has recommended that any unvaccinated children over 12 months of age should get the MMR vaccine to protect the public (and our children). So, I tend to follow his direction when he urges us to get a vaccination that he would normally suggest waiting on.
She also got a prick on her finger to get a blood test for food sensitivity. She never drank breastmilk, formula, or milk from a bottle (although, I did breast feed her until she was 13 months) and still refuses to drink any kind of milk (cow, soy, etc.). She also spit up after every meal for the 1st five months of her life! This gave her a terrible rash on her neck and upper chest. She now has eczema on her upper chest/lower neck and has developed some redness around her mouth. She also tends to get congestion in her throat and a “productive” cough on a regular basis (with no other cold symptoms and clear lungs). The nurse and pediatrician thought that all of this could be attributed to a food sensitivity (not allergy) of some kind. So, I figured that if we could find out what might cause the flare ups then we could try to avoid it in her diet. We will have to wait to find out the results!
As far as the “normal development” of an 18 month old is concerned, she is right on track…
So, our next visit will be in one month to receive the vaccinations that we did not receive today due to getting the MMR instead. Then we are on to the yearly well visits from here on out. It’s hard to believe how quickly they go from an infant to a toddler to a preschooler…I can’t even think past that right now!
After our visit to the doctors this morning we took a trip to Target to get some goodies for our upcoming trip to Colorado to visit my family. I will be blogging about that all next week. It will be the first time that we take both kids on an airplane…and my first trip on an airplane in over 2 years!
We also made a stop at Cook Park to play on the playground which I had promised to the little guy if he was a good boy at the doctors and Target. Seriously, the kids have been amazingly good all day today. I have not had to say “No” or “Stop” once!
Now, if you excuse me I am going to go knock on some wood!
home is…meeting “milestones” and being “normal”…whatever “those” and “that” may be!
Life is good.
It’s easy to forget that when you are frustrated about migraines, 3-1/2 year olds who don’t go to sleep at bedtime, stomach cramps, teething toddlers, messy houses, death, arguments, and all the other normal stuff that happens in life.
It’s all good.
What makes it tough is if we don’t stop to appreciate all of it. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
I don’t know who is in charge, but “they” have a plan for all of us. We’re just along for the ride.
Speaking of ride, lola and I went for a drive this morning after we dropped the little guy off at school. When I don’t feel like tackling the to do list I often just go for a drive.
This morning the sun was peaking through the clouds, and I thought we would get out and enjoy it before raindrops start falling again.
We drove down to The Allison. One of my favorite places to take the kids for a little bit of an adventure. We walk around the beautiful grounds and soak up a little bit of what the Willamette Valley has to offer. It’s a little different every season.
Here is what we found today…
home is…putting the to do list away for a morning.
On March 5th, 2010 I went wine tasting to celebrate a girlfriends birthday. We went out to dinner, spent the night at The Allison Inn & Spa, had breakfast, a massage, and stopped for lunch on the way home. It was good to feel independent for 24 hours.
When I got home I found out that my baby girl had not eaten anything since I left the previous day at noon. She had a jar or two of solids, but no milk. She was 6 months old and wouldn’t take a bottle.
I felt like a terrible mom.
I felt like a terrible wife.
How could I have left to have fun when nobody was having fun at home?
What was I thinking?!
She never did drink from a bottle.
We tried for 6 months after that.
I bought every bottle I could.
We tried sippy cups.
Nothing.
When she turned a year old I asked the pediatrician how I should go about weaning her. I was ready to be done. I needed a break. He just told me to stop…cut one feeding a week. (Meaning, if I was feeding her 4x a day, cut down to 3x for the 1st week, 2x for the 2nd week, etc.)
I did.
It took a little over a month.
It was fine.
She still doesn’t drink milk.
On March 4th, 2011 I spent the first night away from my kids since that night. Almost one year to the day.
This time I did not worry about the bottle. Baby girl can eat. She eats all day.
I felt liberated.
Independent.
Free.
(But, I still wanted Ryan to send me pictures of the kids eating their dinner and sleeping in their beds)
Thanks, Ryan. I needed that.
I’ll write more about it later.
home is…not worrying about the bottle.
I love the little guys school.
Remember this post from a year ago?
I couldn’t be happier with our choice.
And, most importantly, he loves it too!
On Friday night there was a carnival at his school for all the families to attend.
Games, prizes, balloons…the kids had a blast!
home is…a family date night!
On Tuesday morning baby girl and I have the entire morning to spend together.
If you remember from my {get moving…} post from last week, Tuesday is a running day on my exercise routine. You may also know that I have mixed it up lately and go to a class on Tuesday evening and run on Wednesday.
One of the reasons I have made this change is to spend some quality time with baby girl.
One on one time that we rarely get together.
We drop the little guy off at school, go get a bagel, and then head over to the library for the Fun for Ones storytime.
I love to watch her show her 17-month old independence. Of course, it is always nice when she comes back to sit in momma’s lap for a snuggle.
home is…spending tuesday morning with my baby girl, lola.
This week the little guy turned 2-1/2 and baby girl is now 4 months old!
The Little Guy at 2-1/2:
Baby Girl at 4 months :
stephany taddeo 