Beat the winter BLAHS

I think every stay-at-home mom dreads the upcoming winter like the plague. Between bad weather, germs, and bundling everyone, going out is not easy, but staying home can drive a mother INSANE.

So what's a mother to do?

Make a plan and buck up.

Here are somethings that we are doing to help beat the winter:

1. Activities classes: We are continuing to be part of the activities class that the kids currently attend. The class is for 1- to 3-year-olds, so it works for us. Plus, it is only 2 blocks away. I really can't beat location and price, so till the kids out grow it, we are going once a week. We also signed the kids up for swim lessons at our local high school on Saturdays. I would not be able to take them by myself, and the kids will love doing this as a family. (Yes, I will be very pregnant and in a swim suit. Anything for the kids, right?)
2. Craft/Play date swap: I mentioned this before, but a friend and I are each hosting a craft and play  date and lunch for the kids once a month. That is then at least twice a month the kids are doing a little more than the normal play date. Adding the craft to it, really spices up the norm. 
3. Daily routine: I can not stress enough how important having a daily routine is for our family. We play in different rooms and different toys in different ways all through out the day. If we are stuck at home, I feel like this completely helps the day pass by smoothly. When we are stuck in one room, doing the same thing, the day drags, the kids whine, and I want to scream. The more routine we are the better everyone is and the MORE I get done too.



Maisie and Calan playing together at the library. We don't
 let our kids play with our computer at home yet, so the
library computer is a special treat for them. 

4. Turn on the music: I have recently realized that when we play kid-friendly music throughout the day the kids play so much nicer and Calan is not sitting there asking (whining) to turn the TV on every 2 seconds. If the music is on, he knows that it is play time. Plus, Maisie LOVES music. She could sit and listen to music all the time. Everyone is just more pleasant with "Wheels On the Bus" playing in the background. 



The kids playing at Detroit Kid City, a wonderful play area
close to us.It offers so many different things for the kids
to do and role play with. 

5. The good ole library: Seriously, who doesn't love the library with young kids. There is nothing like it in their lives. Free, fun, education, etc. the list goes on. Not only going to libraries in your area, but visit other libraries for their story times. It keeps it all interesting and fun for the kids. 
6. Special day/morning trips: There are so many play areas in our area for young kids, but they all, of course, cost money. So, for us, they are not any every week kind of thing, but we can enjoy them here and there when we need to do something more. 

So, that's the plan. The fact is my house is only 1,230 square feet and some how in the winter that feels like 600. We will try to get out regularly, pray that sickness stays at bay, and enjoy as much time as we can as a family. 

What's on your winter agenda?

Long overdue update: 2 years 4 months / 1 year 3 months

We've had our ups and downs over the last few months, but right now (today, this week, etc.) we are on an incredible up. The kids are doing great and being great. It is just simply great.

I am pretty sure it has something to do with second trimester bliss, but the last 10 days have been so great. I am not tired. I am engaging with my little ones and I am really seeing how much this affects their good moods. I hope I am not jinxing myself here.

Here's their latest update:

Eating

Calan: He is doing so much better with eating. He isn't perfect and definitely eats around vegetables if he can avoid them, but he will always take at least 3 bites when told, which is good for me. I know that their will always be foods that he prefers over others, but as long as he is eating some of the rest, I am a happy mom. Meal times have been going so much better. There is way less struggle, fighting, and time outs. We have hit a happy groove that I hope maintains.
Calan is doing well with forks and spoons. He still uses his fingers often, but will use his spoon and fork often. Over the next month, I hope to start introducing a regular drinking cup at meals. Hopefully, he picks up quickly with little spills (a mom can hope right).

Maisie: She is my amazing eater. She loves food and likes lots of it. We were struggling for a little while where she was tossing food and screeching loudly during meals. We had one horrible eating out experience that left both Bob and I wondering where our sweet innocent little girl went and this loud, disobdient monster had come from. Luckily it seems to be a short lived phase. We discovered that she likes to have her whole plate on her high chair tray so that the food supply is all right there in front of her. Discovering that really helped with the loud noises. We also realized that when she is done, she is done, which is why she was throwing food off her tray. So, we quickly taught her the all done sign and when we see it, we quickly (and I mean quickly) take her plate a leftovers away.
Maisie is finally drinking well from several sippy cups. She hasn't figured out straws yet, but she is at least drinking from cups instead of bottles. It was a slow process, but she finally got there.

Sleeping

Calan: He is doing so much better with his rocking. His still has bad days, but overall the rocking is minimal. He rocks mainly as he is waking up. He rocks very little has he is going to sleep. Dare I say that I can see a light at the end of the body-rocking tunnel? I have not taken him to see a neuroligist about it and not sure if I am going to waste my time. He is getting better and sooner rather than later we will be moving to a twin bed, and hopefully that will stop the rest of the rocking. If it doesn't then maybe then I will go see someone.
He is still napping from 12:30 till about 3 or 3:30. Every once in awhile he has a bad nap that takes him awhile to go down, but overall napping has been the smoothest it has ever been.
He is also sleeping better at night. Though I still hear him sometimes in the middle of the night, overall he has been sleeping from about 8:15 at night till about 7 in the morning. He still takes a little time to fall asleep at night (bedtime is 7:30), but he isn't rocking. We leave a book or a few small toys in with him and he usually sets down in about 40 minutes.

Maisie: I have been truly blessed with a perfect sleeper when it comes to Maisie. I rarely have any issues with her. However, while her molars where coming through there were several nights where she would only sleep with me. It wasn't every night, but it was probably 2 weeks of off and on sleeping with us. Since, I knew it wasn't a habit and that she just need some extra love, I was fine with it.
We have dropped her morning nap, so she is just sleeping in the afternoon usually from noon till 3:30. She still sleeps in a pack-and-play in our room. Naps are just easier in different rooms. While both kids are napping perfectly lately, I don't want one bad nap to wreck the other. It just isn't worth 2 cranky babies.
Maisie still uses a pacifier to sleep, but only uses it in her crib or pack-and-play. Since her use of it is already limited, not sure when we will actually tackle that habit. I am just going to play that one by ear. Good sleep is just too hard to let go of.

Activites

Halloween: The kids had a great time on Halloween. Calan went up to about 20 houses and loved running with older kids in the neighborhood although he couldn't keep up. Maisie went to a few houses and then just hung out in the wagon while we walked around. Kids really do make these holidays come alive again for adults. It was nice night spent with family.

Classes: We joined a play class at our local community center. Calan took the same class last year at this time. It is crazy to see how much more into he is. He pays attention to directions, participates in the craft, and loves shaking the parachute. Maisie is hit or miss. She is one of the youngest in the class that is for 1- to 3-year-olds. However, she does listen to the story and like singing songs with the group. I don't expect her to do everything, but I am happy with what she has been doing.
I also joined MOPS this fall at our church. It is for 2 hours every Tuesday. The kids play in childcare while I get 2 hours of child-free learning and talking with other moms. Both kids have done great. Maisie, who cried every time we dropped her off at MOPS or our church nursery on Sundays, has now become a happy baby ready to go play when she gets dropped off. Calan for the most part still runs to play. Every once in awhile he has a freak out being dropped off, but overall he has very little seperation anxiety.

Friends: To say Calan loves his friend Gavin might be an understatement. He has really learned to play with other kids nicely, but no child compares to Gavin. I probably get asks 40 times a day if Gavin can play. We do see each other often, but it seems to never be enough. It is sweet to me to watch him develop little relationships. He is really becoming a little boy who loves to play and explore.
He has not hit or hurt any children in a long time. I think we solved that issue quickly. I think prepping him before he goes to play with others has helped a ton. Before we go somewhere to play like church, we talk about how we play nicely with friends and he usually tells me how to play nicely with friends that includes "no hit, no pull hair, share toys, take turns." We have not had a bad report in about a month.

Milestones

Maisie: Maisie is FINALLY WALKING! She still crawls, but is walking probably about 40% of the time. She still crawls more quickly than walking so if she needs to get somewhere quickly, she crawls. But, we are finally getting somewhere. 

She is saying a few words like Doggie, Momma, Dadda, Hi, and Banana. 

Maisie loves getting kisses. She loves walking or crawling over to me and and saying "mmmmm" with her lips together to get a kiss. She also blows tons of kisses if I am too far away. It is pretty sweet. 

Calan: Not much is new with him in terms of milestones. We are starting to consider potty training, but with the holidays on their way, I think we are going to hold off till January. But over the next month or so, I am going to start prepping him, so hopefully it all goes smoothly. Am I crazy that I am not looking forward to this? Diapers seem so much easier than potty training. I obviously keep you posted on how it goes. 

Schedule

7/7:30 - wake up

8 - breakfast

8:30 - TV time (Dinosaur Train)

9 - Room time / pack-and-play time

9:45 - Sibling time / learning time* 

10:30 - blanket time

11 - free time 

11:30 - lunch

12 - Maisie nap / Calan TV time (Caillou)

12:30 - Calan nap

3:30 - wake up / snack

4 - afternoon errands / playing downstairs (building toys, train table) / learning time*

5 - Free time / TV time

6 - Dinner

6:30 - Bathtime

7 - Daddy time / story time

7:30 - Bedtime

*I am starting to try to get some learning time in for Calan. He doesn't sit for the longest time, so get through my lesson or craft or story or song or whatever we are doing, I break it up into shorter time periods. We don't do it every day, but probably 2 days a week. 

Overall

Getting through my first trimester left us a little off track, but slowly but surely I am getting us back on track. I am trying to keep us active and engaged as much as I can. I am not perfect, but I am trying. I can see over the last 2 weeks my efforts are playing off. I seem to be way less at the end of my imaginary rope. I feel more at peace and the kids are just happy and growing right along. It is still fun to have 2 babies. I love being with them and wouldn't trade this time in my life for anything, ever. 

2 years / 11 month update

I am the mother of a 2 year old. Seriously, Calan is 2. I thought his first year went by quickly, but this year has flown by. Maisie is going to be 1 soon. Seriously, soon I will be the mother of 2 toddlers and not 2 babies.

This morning Bob had to go to work early, so it was just me and the kids and we sat on our large chair snuggling. I loved every second of it. I love being a mom and love watching them get so old. Though it does make me sad. Time is going by too quickly. I think every mother feels that way. So much happens so quickly those first years, I am so happy that I have been here for everything!

Eating

• Calan is still my finicky eater. I swear he regresses all the time. It is always 1 step forward and 2 steps back with him. I do get him to try everything at dinner, but man is it a battle the whole way. Not sure if it is the time of day or what I am feeding him, but it is just the worst meal. I dread it completely. His appetite is still less, which means at least meals aren't too long. (Yeah.)
  I am working on getting him to stop playing with his food. Everything is either a boat or car and then he makes the hugest mess. Again, such a pain. I just wish meals were easy. One day, right?
• Maisie is an amazing eater. She does not even question it. If it is on her tray, she eats it. Though if after a few bites, she isn't a fan, she starts to drop it on the floor. The little stinker literally smiles at me when she does this. She is eating basically everything that we are. No more purees, which is making life a lot easier. She drinks four 6 oz. bottles of formula each day. I am behind on introducing a sippy cup, so hopefully she transitions OK in a couple weeks to milk. I just have to start being consistent about it. 

Sleeping

• Calan is sleeping a hundred times better. He still rocks, but 2-hour wake ups are becoming fewer and fewer. I can only remember 2 or 3 this month versus 2 or 3 a week. He has been taking a longer and longer time to fall asleep. We have started to give him a sippy cup of water and that helped a little, but now has become another thing he stays awake with. I have started going in there not saying a word and just resetting him and that seems to have helped a little. 
• Luckily, Miss Maisie sleeps through it all. She is out quicker than I can turn off the light. She is awesome when it comes to sleeping. Down at 7:30 and up just after 7 in the morning. No peeps, no rocking, no nothing; just pure sleep. She is still taking 2 naps, an hour in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon. They still nap separately and I probably won't change that till Maisie drops her morning nap. 
• Room sharing is still going great at night. No complaints there. 

Milestones

• Maisie got glasses this month. Little cute pink ones that will hopefully strengthen her right eye so that she doesn't go cross-eyed while focusing. She does really well with them and leaves them on her face most of the time, and to my utter shock, Calan leaves them alone too and tells me when they have fallen down. Crazy right? She will hopefully only need them for a year or 2. 
• Calan's birthday was a success. We had family and friends over for a fire truck birthday party and he loved it. The kid loves his trucks to say the least. 
• Maisie is up to 7 teeth right now and I am pretty sure all of Calan's 2-year molars are in (it is impossible to get in his mouth to check). 
• Maisie is clapping, repeating noises, and dancing (shaking her head or butt to a beat). No words yet. She is pretty quiet, so not sure when that will happen.
• Calan is fearless at all the parks we have been too. Love how active and fun he is. 
• Maisie is getting a bit more balance, but is still just walking along furniture. What is it going to be like having 2 walking kids? I'm a little scared.

Schedule

Still a bit all over the place with so much going on, but here is our base schedule:

• 7/7:30 - wake up, 6 oz. bottle for Maisie
• 8 - breakfast
• 8:30 - Pack-and-play time for Maisie and room time for Calan
• 9 - Maisie nap; Calan free play
• 10:30 - Maisie up; outdoor play or playdate usually. 
• 11 - 6 oz. bottle for Maisie
• 11:30/12 - lunch
• 12:30 - nap
• 3:00- wake up / snack; 6 oz. bottle for Maisie
• 6 - Dinner
• 6:30 - Bath and dad time
• 7:15 - stories
• 7:30 - Bedtime. (Calan usually falls asleep closer to 8 or 8:30, but Maisie is out like a light at 7:30)

Overall

Our summer is off to a great start. We are taking full advantage of the weather and where we live. We are having as much fun as possible. I am already dreading the winter months. Let summer last forever. 

The new jungle gym - our family room chair. 

First wagon ride around our neighborhood

My mini Elton John on our way to the park

The birthday boy!

Anything to do with water and my kids love it!

It's OK to shower

It is so easy to loose track of yourself when you have a newborn. It is so easy to start feeling like the feeding machine (or cow) rather than a mother or woman. It is so easy to get stuck in a rut. It is so easy to start feeling less than you are. To me it is a slippery slope that I swear starts with a shower. 

A shower refreshes you. A shower reminds you that you are more than a feeding machine. A shower reminds you that you are still human. 

I swear that taking a shower daily kept me sane during the newborn stage of my children. Lack of sleep, lack of time, lack of a life, it all can feel overwhelming at the time. But by taking a shower, I felt renewed each morning.

It is so hard sometimes to take 30 minutes for ourselves when another human being is completely dependent on us. But I swear to you, that if you take that 30 minutes to get showered and dressed and maybe even a little makeup, you will feel 100% better, more focused, and more in control of your day

Now, don't get me wrong. There are days that I don't shower, but 9 times out of 10, I do. I make time in our schedule for me to do it. If I was a working mother, I would shower and make the time, why shouldn't I do it even though I am staying home? 

Some mothers might love the fact that they get to stay in PJs for as long as they want as a stay-at-home mom and I can respect that. I just choose to shower because of how it makes me feel and I need to get my day started with a shower (and coffee). 

It is OK to put a priority on ourselves especially when dealing with a newborn and all the hormone issues that follow that. 

When I had Maisie, that first week home I tried to shower when I could. It was kind of a joke with me that either I had time to shower and blow-dry my hair or shower and put on makeup, but doing all 3 seemed impossible. However, it got better, we got more on a routine, and I was able to do all 3 in 30 minutes. 

Now, I know that their are babies that cry A LOT, which can make it hard for a mother to make time for a shower. But, I think those mothers need a shower the must just to refresh their spirit and patience. While not ideal, it is OK for your baby to cry. You might not be able to find 30 minutes, but even a 5 minute shower is better than nothing. Don't you think? I do. 

I have never been a mom who could wake up before her children, so I have always had to figure out a time to do it. Here are my tips on how to fit in a shower:

• Pick a safe space for your baby that you know you can let them be for at least 30 minutes. Before my kids were moving, I put them on their play mat or bouncy chair either in the bathroom or outside the door. After that stopped working, I used our pack-and-play and after that I utilized their bedroom. (I think that it is actually good for kids to play by themselves and not be able to see you during that time.)
• Schedule it. If you want to shower in the morning, work it into your daily routine. I usually shower after breakfast. Calan is usually playing in his room and Maisie is either napping if it is later than 9 a.m. or she is playing in her pack-and-play. 
• Let your children know what you are doing. All I have to do is tell Calan that mommy is taking a shower and he needs to play in his room till I am done and he does it. He doesn't try to leave his room or destroy his room. He usually sits in his chair and either reads, looks out the window, or plays with his cars. 
• Stay consistent. Like anything, with repetition it gets easier to figure out. Like I said at first, I couldn't seem to get it all done at once, but soon it all fell into place and I am showered with hair and makeup done usually by 9:30.

Mother-2-Mother is a blogging series where I am sharing some advice that I tend to give friends when they ask. Take from it what you will. Parenting is a touchy subject. I am by no means telling you how to parent. 

Long overdue 7 month / 20 month update

Well, this month is almost over, and Calan will be 21 months in 9 days, but I still haven't shared everything that has been going on for my 7- and 20-month-old. So here it is:

Sleeping

• I would love to say that Calan's rocking is done, but it is still going strong. I feel like a little bit of a broken record about it, but I just wish it would stop. We have tried intervening and we have tried ignoring; nothing seems to help. Though I have found that during nap time, if we get to him right as he starts, he will stay asleep his full nap. So, that is a little victory. His naps were hit or miss this month with some only an hour and a half and others a nice 3-hour nap. But his night sleep (besides rocking) has been good.
• Maisie is still sleeping upstairs. I thought I would try letting them nap together, but I found that one of them would ultimately wake up the other one too soon, so that was short lived. Just the other week, we tried night sleeping together, but unfortunately they got sick, so that was short lived. Maisie is great about missing a nap and making it up later. Calan was never like this. Most kid activities are during her morning nap, so if we are out and about, she usually doesn't nap. However, she takes a great 2.5- to 3-hour-nap in the afternoon and if needed, she will take a catnap from 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. My girl is a great sleeper other than ending up in bed with us each night around 4 a.m. till 7 a.m.

Eating

• Again, I sound like a broken record with Calan on eating. He loves his carbs and fruit, but meat and veggies are hit or miss. I try to hide them and he just eats around them. He would eat 20 bananas a day if I let him. There really haven't been any new foods; just trying to get him to eat vegetables. He has started to eat with a fork and spoon. He makes a mess, but he will eat more veggies if they are on a fork or spoon.
• Maisie is doing a lot better at eating solids. Though she still won't eat plain cereal. I usually just mix it with whatever veggies or fruit she is having with it. She has had bananas, pears, sweet potatoes, and peas. I have tried giving her Cheerios, but she does not seem interested in self-feeding yet. She still makes a bit of a mess with the solids, but at least they are being eaten.

Activities

• Well, TV watching is still more than I would like, but with the weather changing, I think this problem will fix itself. However, we have been doing more out of the house. We joined the Royal Oak Mom's Club and between that and other friends and outings, we have kept ourselves pretty busy. We have gone to a few indoor play centers and he really loves going down slides. He is such a social little guy. He loves to play chase with other kids. Some little 3- or 4-year-old usually matches up with him and let's him chase them around. He grins and laughs the whole time.
• Maisie is doing her thing. She is starting to move. She pushes herself around in a circle and scotches backward. She loves to be on the ground, and actually holding her is quite difficult because she twists and turns to be put down. She loves to be talked to and smiles and grins and kicks about when you just look at her. Cracks me up.

Schedule

• 7/7:30 a.m. – Maisie and Calan wake up. Maisie eats and gets dressed. Calan slowly rises and either plays with some toys or watches TV and drinks milk
• 8 a.m. – Family eats breakfast (even Maisie eats with us at the table).
• 8:30 a.m. – Bob leaves for work. I do a few chores and make some coffee and we play for a bit in our family room.
• 9 a.m.- Maisie naps and Calan plays in his pack-and-play. I either shower or do chores or just enjoy some me time.
• 10:00 a.m. – Calan and I play. I usually try to do some activity with him, but he usually does what ever he wants.
• 10:30 a.m. – Maisie wakes up.
• 11 a.m. – Maisie drinks a bottle.
• 11:30 a.m.- We have lunch (all of us).
• 12 p.m. – Calan and Maisie have blanket time. This means Maisie is usually on her play mat.
• 12:30 p.m. – Calan and Maisie naps. I do whatever needs to be done (me time, shower, blog, chores, etc.)
• 3 p.m. – Calan wakes up
• 3:30 p.m. – Maisie wakes up and has a bottle and Calan has a snack.
• 4 p.m. – We play or do some errands.
• 5 p.m. – I start cooking dinner, so either Calan continues playing well or if he is cranky, he has been playing in his pack-and-play again.
• 5:45 p.m. – Dinner for everyone.
• 6:15 p.m. – Bath time
• 6:45 p.m. – Maisie has her bottle
• 7 p.m. – Maisie and Calan bedtime
• 11 p.m. - Maisie has a small bottle
• 4 a.m. - Maisie tends to wake up and moves into bed with us (a HORRIBLE habit that we are going to try and break this weekend)

Overall

• Calan still is the happiest kid I know. Every time we are out and about, strangers comment on how smiley he is and ask if he is always that way. And besides when he is a bit cranky, he really is ALWAYS that smiley. If you just start laughing, he starts laughing. Cracks me up. He has become a great big brother and really has been amazing with Maisie, but I have noticed a little jealousy. For example if I am holding her in my lap, he tends to move on to my lap as well. He is learning to share a little. He knows the word, but says it as he takes whatever he wants or if we try to take back something, he holds tight saying, "share, share." Better than nothing I guess.
• Maisie is really on the move. She is inching her way to mobility. Not sure what I am going to do when I have 2 mobile children, but many mothers before me have done it, so I am sure I will be just fine. She isn't very vocal and hasn't started saying and sounds yet. She does giggle and coo, but no "ba, ba, ba" or "da, da, da" yet. She is really observing so many things. She has really started to study the world around her. Love her smile and her two little teeth that show when she grins. She melts my heart.
• As a mom of two little guys, I would say that since 6 months life has gotten increasingly more difficult. I feel a bit stretched. It probably hasn't helped that Bob is working a ton, so I am doing a lot by myself. However, I am starting to get use to my new routine and as the weather keeps getting better, life seems to be getting better. Can't wait for more.

Calan and Maisie at 6 months. 

P.S. This is my 200th blog!

Anything goes Thursday: 18 month / 5 month update

Phew! We made it through Christmas and the kids were champs. It was a nice holiday. We felt a bit rushed and actually Maisie didn't open her presents till the 26th because of us rushing around visiting family.

Our kids were of course spoiled by family and Calan is loving all cars, trucks, and trains. Total boy. Maisie has discovered her feet, so little is competing with those, but I am sure that she will love all of her toys as well soon enough.

We are visiting my parents right now, finishing up our holiday celebrations. And of course, Calan is sick. I had a good 18-month streak of healthy kids, but yesterday Calan had some kind of stomach bug and today he is just whiny. We are surviving and he seems to be doing much better. And thank God for baby Tylenol.

Here's what the kids have been doing this month:

Sleeping

• Calan -He is still half waking up a couple times in the middle of night, so between Maisie and Calan I am up quite a bit for short periods of time. It kind of stinks, but not sure what else I can do other than ignore it. However, when he got sick the other night, I did not rush in at all and wish that I had. I am so use to him waking up that it is hard to know when something is really wrong. Because of the holiday, his naps have been a bit off too. I am hoping when we get home they go back to being 2.5-3 hours. He needs it, and so do I.
• Maisie - She successfully sleeping in her pack-and-play for all naps. She is longer sleeping with a blanket on her head. She sleeps so well for naps. I love it. I just wish her night sleeping was as good has her day sleeping. She wakes up each night at 2:30 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. mostly to just comfort nurse. I am realizing that now that she is gaining weight and eating a lot during the day, it is officially time to start training to get her to sleep through the night. We are hoping that it is just going to take a few nights and are going to try this weekend. Fingers crossed.

Eating

• Calan - Veggies are still a struggle, but I just keep offering them and I just don't give him more of what he likes unless he eats some of the veggies. He is doing better. He isn't starving to say the least. Over the holidays, he obviously was not eating very well and was pretty distracted with all the people around. With him still a little sick today, we are sticking to the BRAT foods (Banana, Rice, Apple, Toast).
• Maisie - SHE IS GAINING WEIGHT! Yeah! Maisie is breastfeeding and drinking formula at most meals. She nurses and then drinks a 4-oz. bottle. In the middle of the night I am just nursing and if we are out, she just gets formula. Our doctor would like us to start solids, but I think that we are going to hold off a little longer. She just doesn't seem ready to me. Probably by the end of January though we will start. Calan was 5.5 months when we started with him and I am going to probably wait till at least then too with her.

Milestones

• Calan - He is learning every day. He just seems like a toddler and not a baby anymore. His vocabulary continues to expand by leaps and bounds. He is getting really good at following simple instructions. We have really started to utilize time-outs for him, which isn't a milestone that I am too happy about.
• Maisie - Maisie's feet are her pure enjoyment right now. Little is competing with her feet. She is loving her voice as well and is laughing and smiling all the time. We are loving it as her parents. She just gets so excited and happy that she shrieks with joy. Love it. She is so close to rolling over back to stomach. She gets 3/4 of the way over, but just can't seem to get her arms out of the way to get there completely. Hopefully soon she will be rolling all over the place. I can't wait till she is taking toys from Calan.

Activities

• Calan - I have been doing a lot of little crafts with Calan. Some he has likes like bath paints and some he has not. But I have noticed that he is getting better with painting and coloring than he was in the past, so something is working. He is pretty cute with his toy golf clubs. We say "1 hand, 2 hand, Swing," and he holds the club with two hands and hits the ball. He is so cute looking like a little golfer and Bob just loves it. He even lets the club slide through his hands like his dad. Love it.
• Maisie - She is getting really active with her floor mat and hanging toys. She loves to grab toward them and batting at everything. We have tried the exersaucer, and she likes it a little bit, but still looks a little uncomfortable in it, so we haven't been using it much at all.

Schedule

• 7 a.m. - Maisie wakes up and eats.
• 7:30 a.m. - Calan wakes up
• 8:00 a.m. - Calan eats breakfast has milk.
• 8:30 a.m. - Calan playtime in his pack and play. Maisie starts her nap.
• 9:30 a.m. - Calan dress, helps with some chores with me.
• 10 a.m. - Maisie eats, Calan sits and "reads" books or puzzles
• 11:30 a.m. - Maisie naps / Calan eats lunch
• 12 p.m. - Calan blanket time
• 12:30 p.m. - Calan naps;
• 1 p.m. - Maisie eats / Maisie & mom time
• 2:30 p.m. - Maisie nap
• 3 p.m. - Calan wakes up / snack
• 4 p.m. - Maisie wakes and eats
• 4:30 p.m. - free time (this could be errands, dinner prep, sibling time, anything to fill till dinner)
• 6 p.m. - dinner
• 6:20 p.m. - bath time
• 6:40 p.m. - Calan gets ready for bed; drinks milk
• 7 p.m. - Maisie eats
• 7:30 p.m. - Calan and Maise bedtime
• 10:30 p.m. - Maisie eats
• 2:30 a.m. and 4:30 a.m.- Middle of the night feeding for Maisie

Overall

• Calan - Calan was so good during the holidays and with so many different schedules and environments. We were a little exhausted chasing him around, but with everything said and done, he was so god for an 18-month-old.
• Maisie - Love her and love the fact that she is breaking out of her hermit shell. She is full of smiles and laughs. She is growing so quickly now there is no stopping her. I can't wait to see all the milestones she hits this month. Can't believe that next month she will be 6 months. Crazy.

17 month / 4 month update

The holiday season is upon us and life is getting pretty busy around here. The days just seem to wiz by between meals and naps, it is getting a little harder to get out of the house. Plus, I'll be honest the rainy, cold weather hasn't helped.

Thanksgiving went really well. The kids were pretty adorable and behaved very well. Calan wasn't the biggest fan of turkey, but since I can't stand turkey, I didn't blame him.

Here's what's going on with the kids:

Sleeping

• Calan - He has successfully transitioned to one nap a day. He usually sleeps from 12:30 till 3. It is great how consistent and predictable that nap has become. However, it does limit my time to run errands in the morning, as well as lunches with Bob during the week. On the bright side, he wakes up pretty happy, rested, and content. It also gives me a full wake time with Maisie just her and I. At night, Calan is still rocking way too much. He seems wake up to a half sleep and rocks back and forth against his crib. He wakes up happy and does seem rested in the mornings, so it doesn't seem to affect him there, but I just wish he wasn't doing it all.
• Maisie - She is getting a little harder to get to sleep. She is starting to not want her blanket on her face, which I would totally be OK with if that meant she could fall asleep with out it. We are about half and half falling asleep with a blanket over her face and half without it. Hopefully by next month, she will totally not need it at all. You can tell she has developed more of an awareness to her world because it is a little harder to get her to sleep and she is very much more awake when she is awake. As for night time, she is no where close to sleeping through the night. Because of her lack of weight gain, anytime she wakes up in the middle of the night, I am feeding her even if she probably does not need to eat. It is important for me to give her as much food as I can until she starts to show gains. I usually feed her 10:30/11 p.m. before I go to bed and she is waking 1:50ish and 4ish in the morning. She then wakes in the morning between 7 and 7:30.

Eating

• Calan - His appetite seems to have tapered off a little. He eats pretty decent meals at breakfast and lunch and then a smaller dinner meal. His dinner meal is probably smaller because I try to feed him more vegetables during that meal and he usually fights me on it. However, he is still a fruit lover and bananas are definitely his favorite. He can down a whole banana in about a minute.
• Maisie - If you are following along with the blog, you know that Maisie is not gaining weight like she should be. She has only gained 4 ounces since Sept. 27. We are now supplementing my breastfeeding with formula. She is nurses and then I give her a 2 oz. bottle after her day time feedings. I just nurse in the middle of the night. We are suppose to also be mixing a little cereal in her bottles, but she refuses to drink a bottle that has cereal in it. Since it is more important for her to take the formula, I have forgone the cereal for right now. But, my mother just offered a new way to try and get her to take the cereal today, so I will try to give her the cereal again tomorrow. Hopefully, it works. We go in for another weight check Dec. 14.

Milestones

• Calan - His vocabulary is jumping leaps and bounds. He seems to pick up a new word every day. He is really working on communicating with us and is realizing that words get him what he wants or needs much better than whining. We have also transitioned Calan to a booster chair for meals. It isn't too much different from the high chair, but it is nice to have the 3 of us around the same table and I don't have to sit sideways to feed him as well.
• Maisie - She is really becoming aware of everything around her. She is exploring touch and grabbing things pretty easily to her mouth. She takes her pacifier out and holds on to and then tries to get it back in her mouth.

Activities

• Calan - He is successfully doing blanket time for 30 minutes. He stays and plays and reads his books and I rarely if ever have to remind him to stay on the blanket. Our next step is to test blanket time out in public to see how well he listens. Calan loves to sing and dance as well as play with his golf clubs and trucks.
• Maisie - Her activities are still a bit limited. Because her feedings take a bit longer and then so she doesn't spit everything back up, she is still not on the ground as much as she should be. However, she does love to play on her floor mat and playing with the toys. She is getting pretty good at grabbing the toys with both hands.

Schedule

• 7 a.m. - Maisie wakes up and eats.
• 7:30 a.m. - Calan wakes up
• 8:00 a.m. - Calan eats breakfast has milk.
• 8:30 a.m. - Calan playtime in his pack and play. Maisie starts her nap.
• 9:30 a.m. - Calan dress, helps with some chores with me.
• 10 a.m. - Maisie eats, Calan sits and "reads" books or puzzles
• 11:30 a.m. - Maisie naps / Calan eats lunch
• 12 p.m. - Calan blanket time
• 12:30 p.m. - Calan naps;
• 1 p.m. - Maisie eats / Maisie & mom time
• 2:30 p.m. - Maisie nap
• 3 p.m. - Calan wakes up / snack
• 4 p.m. - Maisie wakes and eats
• 4:30 p.m. - free time (this could be errands, dinner prep, sibling time, anything to fill till dinner)
• 6 p.m. - dinner
• 6:20 p.m. - bath time
• 6:40 p.m. - Calan gets ready for bed; drinks milk
• 7 p.m. - Calan bedtime/Maisie eats
• 7:30 p.m. - Maise bedtime
• 10:30 p.m. - Maisie eats
• 1:50 a.m. and 4:30 a.m.- Middle of the night feeding for Maisie

Overall

• Calan - I can see why toddlers are so exhausting, but it is still such a fun time. I love that he is talking more and more. I can't wait for the day when we are having conversations. He is still very much a daddy's little buddy. He loves me, but there is no one like dad for him.
• Maisie - We will continue to feed, feed, and feed some more till Maisie starts gaining weight like she should. While eating formula has made her a little more fussy, she still is easily settled by me. Just like Calan adores his dad, Maisie is quite the mommy's girl and I am loving all the cuddles and snuggles.

After a little bit of a battle, Maisie is taking a bottle from me.

Calan loves playing outside. I, however, can't stand the cold. 

Calan looking through and singing with his favorite book. 

She might be little, but she is pretty cute.

Always trying to be like daddy. 

16 month / 3 month update

Well another month has flown by and my babies are getting bigger by the day. I feel like I just did this for 15 months and 2 months and here we are another month older. They are doing so well and I love every moment (well almost every moment, I am human).

So here is the round up:

Sleeping

• Calan - Overall Calan is still a great sleeper. He was still taking 2 great naps of about 1.5 to 2 hours each everyday, but he was waking in the middle of the night and playing or rocking for long extended periods of time. I think that he was getting too much sleep during the day and it was effecting his nighttime sleep. This week, I have started to transition him to one nap. Out of 4 days of doing it, 2 were great, 1 he didn't nap well and ended up going to bed early, and 1 he needed 2 naps. So it is just the beginning and we are taking it on a day-by-day basis. If he seems like he needs 2, he gets 2; if he needs 1, then he gets 1. It is making it a little hard to plan things right now, but overall, I think he is ready to go to 1 nap, so I don't think we will be in limbo for too long.
• Maisie -  She is still a sleeping champ once I get her to sleep. She is very particular and if something isn't quite right, it can take awhile to get her to sleep. She still sleeps with a blanket over her head. I am sure I am setting up some bad habits that won't be easy to break her off, but she naps so well when everything is done right. It is the difference between a 20-minute catnap and a 2-hour glorious nap. At night, she is still waking up once or twice. This past week she went through a crazy growth spurt and woke up a ton, but that seems to have settled down and we are back to the regular once or twice. Hoping that my night waking days are numbered. I hope she is getting close to sleeping through the night.

Eating

• Calan - He is still eating a ton. I actually had to increase our grocery bill to keep up. He loves most foods, but he is still particular about how they are cooked or seasoned. He is a carbohydrate addict, so I try to give his other foods first. We are also eating out more and more with him. He behaves really well for the most part. It is nice to know that we can go out to eat and not worry how he is going to act. Since he eats so many things, there is always something we can give him when we are out and about.
• Maisie - She is still nursing really well. With the growth spurt, I could barely keep up with her. She was eating basically every 2 hours. She also has had a little bit of formula to fill in when I wasn't around. She took it just fine. When I was nursing Calan, I tried to keep up an extra supply for when I was gone, and it was horrible having to figure out when he might sleep well and I would be able to wake up and pump some. This time I decided that I wasn't going to drive myself crazy. If I need to, she will have formula if I don't have extra breast milk around. This past week was the first time we had to and she did fine.

Milestones

• Calan - He is doing a lot of the same things he did last month, just better. He is saying please for everything and not just in sign language. He says please for everything from getting out of his pack-and-play to opening the gate to more food. It is great that he is doing it, but he doesn't quite understand why sometimes please doesn't get him what he wants when he wants it. However for the most part, "please" has cut down on tantrums.
  The last of Calan's incisor teeth came through this month. Thank goodness! We should be done with teething till his 2-year-molars. Kind of crazy to think that last Halloween Calan's first teeth popped through and now we are finally done for awhile.
  He is picking up on so many things so quickly now. For example, Bob taught him how to show the touchdown hand signal in one day. That would have taken me a month to teach before.
  He is climbing up on furniture pretty easily now and for the most part doesn't roll off. He understands that he has to climb down carefully. 
• Maisie -  She isn't rolling over as much as she was last month. She gets her arms in the way and can't figure out how to get over them. She is blowing raspberries, batting at some close toys and pulling blankets up to her mouth.

Activities

• Calan - Calan is still doing pack-and-play time in the morning and he is up to 15-minutes of blanket time each day. We are working on matching colors and focusing on red, blue, and green. He is doing pretty well with it and says blue. We have also started coloring. We are attending playgroup on Thursdays and he does well sitting on the rug for story time and listening to the instructor. 
• Maisie - Her activities are about the same. Cooing, smiling and floor time. I hope to be a little more specific in my activities with her. I should be doing more floor time than I am. 

Schedule 

• 7 a.m. - Maisie wakes up and eats.
• 7:30 a.m. - Calan wakes up 
• 8:00 a.m. - Calan eats breakfast has milk. 
• 8:30 a.m. - Calan  playtime in his pack and play. Maisie starts her nap.
• 9 a.m. - Calan playtime/reading time
• 10 a.m. - Maisie eats, we play together
• 11 a.m. - Maisie naps
• 11:30 a.m. - Calan eats lunch
• 12 p.m. - Calan blanket time (15 min.) / devotionals
• 1 p.m. - Calan nap; Maisie eats
• 2 p.m. - Maisie naps
• 3:30 / 4 p.m. -  Calan wakes up / Maisie eats 
• 5 p.m. - free time or errands
• 6 p.m. - dinner
• 6:20 p.m. - bath time
• 6:40 p.m. - Calan gets ready for bed; drinks milk
• 7 p.m. - Calan bedtime/Maisie eats
• 7:30 p.m. - Maise bedtime
• 10:30 p.m. - Maisie eats
• 3 a.m. - Middle of the night feeding for Maisie

Overall

• Calan - He is definitely transitioning into a full blown toddler. He is learning new things everyday and starting to really interact and play. He is a handful, but he is such a blessing and I love watching him grow and evolve into a little boy. 
• Maisie - She is so smiley and happy. She loves watching Calan play around her. She never seems to care when he is poking at her. She does get frustrated quickly and has little patience. She loves

Blanket time revisited and in action

Before Maisie was born, I had started doing "blanket time" with Calan, but basically abandoned it when I got a little too pregnant and Maisie was too young to institute it correctly. I am so glad we took a break. At the time Calan and I were pretty frustrated with each other, and doing blanket time was not working for either of us. This has completely changed. Calan is just that much older and I have more patience and both of us are on the same page (for the most part) now.

Blanket time is basically exactly what it sounds like. It is a specific amount of time that he spends playing on a blanket. The idea is that it sets up a limited area with out a physical parameter and helps develop the ability to stay put within a boundary.

The pack-and-play is great, but blanket time is different because there is no physical parameter that stops him from running off.

This is not an overnight event. Calan didn't just one day think, well I think I will stay on this blanket and just play. We are working step by step, minute by minute to get him to stay and happily play. Blanket time is not a time out. It is not a punishment. It should be just like independent play time and be a happy play time that they focus on just a few toys.

I have been doing blanket time, again, with Calan for about a month and we have worked our way up to 8 minutes that he sits on the blanket and plays with a few of his favorite toys. It is not perfect and I usually still have to tell him once or twice to stay on the blanket, but he does usually stay there for the whole time. Once we get to the point that he stays on the blanket for 8 minutes without me saying anything we will add a minute and work our way up to about 30 minutes.

Right now, I stay right by Calan reading blogs, books, or Bible study. I do something other than hoover over him. I am right there to correct him, but I am not engaging with him.

I start blanket time by telling him that we are going to do blanket time and that I want him to play on his blanket for 8 minutes. I lay out a blanket and set up a few toys on it as he sits down on the blanket. He loves sitting on blankets, so he usually jumps on before a single toy is on it for him. I then set a timer and say that blanket time has begun. I won't lie, he usually just looks at me with a blank stare, but somehow he does seem to understand because when I get up to sit on the couch, he stays on the blanket and usually grabs for a toy.

Here is how yesterday's blanket time went:

Blanket time has begun. He had to take his socks off first.

Just sitting here playing with his Mrs. Noah figurine and
wiggling his toes.

Hmmm ... realized I was taking photos with my cell phone.
He crawls toward me off the blanket at about 5 minutes.

I put him back on and tell him that he has 3 minutes left of
blanket time and that my phone is a no touch.

Literally 2 seconds later, he stopped crying and went right
back playing with his toys.

Playing away.

Time flies when you are having fun.

Timer goes off. I tell him blanket time is over with.

After cheers and claps from me, he gets up and grabs
his lamb.

Calan and lamb are out of there.
He actually just came over and sat next to me and we
then read a book.

His time on the blanket is not traumatic or cruel. It is a tool that will come in handy for me as his parent when I need him to first obey me and secondly to stay in one spot when I ask him to. He doesn't understand that but I do.

15 month / 2 month update

Another month has passed and seriously where has the time gone? I can't believe that Maisie is 2 months. It is amazing to me how quickly time flies with children. They grow and change so quickly that every time I sit down to reflect on their growth I am amazed at how quickly everything is happening.

I decided that I needed to organize my updates a little better, so I am going to break it down into a few categories so that each month I am looking at the same things and can easily look back later and be amazed.

So here is what we have been up to and doing:

Sleeping

• Calan - He has been sleeping pretty well. He still takes 2 naps and I don't see that changing too soon. He sleeps for about an hour in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. About once a week, I would say he misses a nap and it is usually on the weekend. My guess is that because the weekend isn't normal routine and he just loves being around his dad that sleeping is not a priority for him. But one nap battle a week seems like no big deal after dealing with a month of battles. I am so glad that I stuck with it and didn't give in to him not napping. He wasn't ready and I could tell. And the fact that he is taking great naps now is just proof. At night, Calan has been waking up a little in the middle of the night. Most of the time he wakes and goes back down by himself after about 10 minutes. I think that his teeth that are coming in are the culprit of his wake ups. He goes to bed at 7 p.m. each night, but probably takes about 30 minutes to fall asleep and he wakes up in the morning at 7. He has been doing this weird crib rocking thing to fall asleep. He rocks hard against the side of the crib till he basically falls over asleep. He isn't hurting himself, and I would love to know how to stop it, but it is what it is for now.
• Maisie - Overall, Maisie is sleeping pretty well. At night, I have no complaints. She usually wakes up once at about 3:30 or 4 in the morning and then is up at 7 a.m. As for naps, she is a little hard to get to sleep, but once she is she takes great naps. The biggest problem, and it is most definitely my fault, is that she likes to nap with a blanket over her head. Yep, one of the biggest mommy no-nos. I found that Maisie is pretty light sensitive. She doesn't seem to care about noises, but light really affects her. She also likes to be super warm to nap peacefully. Because of this, she naps basically all the time in her bouncy seat by me. I am hoping that she grows out of this habit easily and I don't have to break her of it in order to get her to sleep in a crib at some point.

Eating

• Calan - He eats a ton. Calan is pretty adventurous with his food. He likes flavor. I do have to hide some veggiatables in order to get him to eat them, but he does eat them. He just would not pick up a plain green bean and eat it, but add a little cheese or some seasoning, he will at least try it and 70% of the time, he will eat it. He loves breads and fruit. I have yet to find a fruit he won't eat. He devours them and since they are so easy to prepare, he eats them often. He is eating 3 meals and 1 snack each day. He has completely transitioned to eating table foods and drinking from cups. He is still eating from a high chair, and I don't think that we are going to transition him to a booster seat till he is closer to 18 months.
• Maisie - She is a nursing champ. She eats well and usually just eats every 3 hours during the day. She hasn't had a lot of bottles, but she takes a bottle without any issues at all. The medicine seems to have really helped her reflux. She still spits up a lot, but the pain seems to have disappeared. We are treating her for a mild case of thrush, a yeast infection in her month common among nursing infants. At her 2 month appointment, the doctor thought she might have it and to be on the safe side, we are treating her for it. If it was thrush, I didn't want it to get worse and affect her eating. Hopefully, it clears up quickly and we can go back to just giving her one medication.

Milestones

• Calan - Calan is really starting to communicate more with us. He is understanding simple commands and enjoys being asked to do little tasks like turning on and off the lights. Probably the cutest thing he is doing is saying please and thank you with sign language. He gets to say please when he is asking for something, but thank you is basically just done when we ask him to do it. He also getting to know his body parts and likes to show us his head and nose. We are working on the rest. He also likes singing and while he isn't exactly saying the words, he kind of says some the right tone and sounds for a few of his favorite songs. For example, R sounds for "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." He loves working on puzzles and stacking blocks. He really concentrates and focuses and cheers himself on. On the negative side, we have started tantrums too. He clearly gets upset when something he doesn't like happens.
• Maisie - I am completely amazed that She is rolling over from her stomach to her back. Because of her reflux, I have not been able to put her down on the ground for most of her life. It has only been over the last 2 weeks that I have really been putting her down for about 15 minutes a day. And a few days ago, she rolled over. I thought it was a fluke, but she has done it everyday since, so not a fluke. She is smiling a ton and cooing up a storm when she isn't pissed off about something. She is holding rattles when placed in her hand also. So, she is doing great for 2 months. And I feel like she is growing up so quickly.

Activities

• Calan - He loves to read, look at pictures, dance, hit golf balls, and chase our dog Elle. He loves to go for walks and play at the park. However, he also learned to climb the jungle gym at the park, so it has gotten a little difficult to take the 2 kids to the park by myself. Chasing after Calan is a full-time job. He has learned that there is more to the house then our family room and likes to explore when he can. He still does about 40 minutes of playtime in his pack and play each morning and I have just started blanket time again. It was a little hard to do blanket time while I was really pregnant and while I was nursing a lot, but now, I can give more attention to it and hope to have him sitting and playing on a blanket happily for about 15 minutes by the time he is 16 months and playing for 30 minutes by 17 months. We shall see if it works. Like everything, I think consistency will win out
• Maisie - I have just recently felt comfortable enough to lay her on the ground for an extended period of time, so she has just started playing on our floor mat. She seems to like it and looking at the lights blink above her. She loves being talked to and smiles and coos and focuses on me when I talk to her.

Schedule

• 7 a.m. - Everyone wakes up. Maisie eats and Calan drinks some milk.
• 7:30 a.m. - Calan eats breakfast and finishes milk
• 8:00 a.m. - Calan has independant playtime in his pack and play. Maisie starts her nap.
• 8:40 a.m. - Calan playtime/reading time
• 9:45 a.m. - Calan naps
• 10 a.m. - Maisie eats, we play together
• 11 a.m. - Maisie naps
• 11:30 a.m. - Calan wakes up
• 12 p.m. - Calan lunch
• 12:20 p.m. - learning time
• 1 p.m. - Maisie eats, Calan has some blanket time/ play time
• 1:30 p.m. - This time changes from either a walk, errands, or sibling play time depending on the day
• 2:30 p.m. - Calan and Maisie nap
• 4:00 p.m. - Maisie eats
• 4:30 p.m. - Calan wakes up / snack
• 5 p.m. - free time or errands
• 6 p.m. - dinner
• 6:20 p.m. - bath time
• 6:40 p.m. - Calan gets ready for bed; drinks milk
• 7 p.m. - Calan bedtime/Maisie eats
• 7:30 p.m. - Maise bedtime
• 10:30 p.m. - Maisie eats
• 4 a.m. - Middle of the night feeding for Maisie

Overall

• Calan - He is still an overly happy little guy, who loves learning and exploring new things. He makes us laugh and smile with pure joy. He is always up to giving you a kiss or a hug.
• Maisie - We are starting to get to know her more. I can figure out her cries better so she doesn't escalate into an uncontrollable mess. She can be a bugger, but her smile will soften any heart.