PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[somethingshiny]

argh! Why does PS eat posts?!?!

Allie~ Thanks for the food post. You've given me some ideas to try!

Lanie~ I already sent the pics to her. lol. Hopefully she'll think it's funny too.

 

[noelwr]

shiny - great pic! the teacher at the daycare told me today that when Skye plays with other kids, she grabs their hair. haha! she must be jealous she hardly has any. (and in a weird way I'm relieved I have none to pull right now.) obviously it's pureed into her food, but Skye eats fish, chicken, pork and minced meat. it doesn't puree well, so it's usually strings of this stuff in her food. do they have baby cookies there? they've got ones here that contain iron and vitamins and dissolve very quickly in the mouth.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Based on this picture I think my kid is destined for a career involving public speaking.

 

[Puppmom]

HH. great pic! He does seem to have something very important to say!

Re: the way kids *play* with each other. My brother has gotten 3 “pink slips” from daycare because my 17 month old nephew has been biting. First one says “J’s friend was stepping on him in a friendly manner…”, “So and so was sitting on J in a playful way…” and “J’s playmate was playfully hitting him on the head…” Hello, if you step on me, sit on me or hit me in the head, I might bite you too!

 

[random_thought]

HH. great pic! He does seem to have something very important to say!

Re: the way kids *play* with each other. My brother has gotten 3 “pink slips” from daycare because my 17 month old nephew has been biting. First one says “J’s friend was stepping on him in a friendly manner…”, “So and so was sitting on J in a playful way…” and “J’s playmate was playfully hitting him on the head…” Hello, if you step on me, sit on me or hit me in the head, I might bite you too!

*Snort* I agree! Who playfully sits on somebody lmao!

HH that picture is hilarious!

 

[somethingshiny]

Noel~ Lily is a hair puller too. When I leave my hair down, especially if I let it go curly, she won't keep her hands out of it. A ponytail has become my daily look. My sis was here last night and she has fairly long hair. You could see Lily's face light up like, "I can't wait to get my hands on that!!"

Pupp~ Wow. I find it very strange that the daycare considers any form of hitting "playful." I think I'd encourage my kid to hit them back.

HH~ A's got my vote!!

I gave Lily Chicken Casserole last night. She loved it. I didn't know if she'd eat it at all because I put quite a bit of rosemary and thyme in it. Yesterday was the first day we did only 3 bottles. Morning, mid-afternoon, and bedtime. Prior to this she'd also have one at lunch. She was content with milk in a cup at lunch. Next bottle to knock out will be the afternoon bottle. I'll probably start that in another week or so.

 

[Skippy123]

HH, aww, he is stinkin adorable!!!

SS, lol, too funny! hehe

Oh I LOVE reading this thread; I am book marking all the reflux and rice cereal tips! MARA, great idea on the grains; I never thought of that and great fiber too!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Just wanted to ditto what Mara said about the grains. I had a lot of success giving Aidan super grains like quinoa and salba. I think the extra fiber/protein really helped keep him full at night.

 

[Mara]

I love fiber and protein so as soon as it was ok to give that stuff to J I was all about it. The cereals etc he eats now too are all pretty high protein/fiber. And he loves fruits like pears and blueberries which again are high in fiber. Just make sure they are also drinking enough liquid to help the fiber pass through ok. But yeah you can pretty much take any grain and coffee grind it to make it fine!

 

[Skippy123]

I love fiber and protein so as soon as it was ok to give that stuff to J I was all about it. The cereals etc he eats now too are all pretty high protein/fiber. And he loves fruits like pears and blueberries which again are high in fiber. Just make sure they are also drinking enough liquid to help the fiber pass through ok. But yeah you can pretty much take any grain and coffee grind it to make it fine!

that is awesome Mara. I was talking to a mom recently and I saw what she was feeding her daughter (junk food) and then she mentioned that her kid has a hard time having a bm. well duh, the kid needs fruits, whole grains and veggies too. How old was J when you started him on whole grains? tia! I will look back in case you ans already.

 

[Graff_Pink]

Was wondering if anyone on the site had any experience in hiring a nanny/baby-sitter and if there were any recommended local services in the Boston area? I am new to the State and will be going back to work in another month, and am aggressively in pursuit of a reliable, responsible stay-at-home nanny-type service. Everyone has been so kind, helpful and nice here, and I've really enjoyed seeing the interactions on the website (while researching my side-obsession: jewelry! ha ha), so I thought this was also a good place to start.

I had an ex who I found out lied on his resume about work experience (along with everything else, you have no idea), so I am gun-shy to anything given on paper as far as resumes and references (I honestly did not realize people actually DID lie about work experience!). I think even with an agency's help I should still do a background check on anyone coming to take care of Ben. But not sure how to go about that either!

I'm just looking for any kind of feedback - especially from anyone in the Boston area - it would surely be appreciated. Ben will be 7 months by the time we have any kind of home care - and once he hits the year mark we will consider daycare. Although I am hoping I will have more flexibility at my new job by then!

Thank you in advance - so much!

 

[Skippy123]

Graff,You might ask the Preggo thread too; I think one of the preggos just found a nanny through an agency. I got lucky and one of my college aged relatives needed a job for the summer so she is helping me out. Nice to see you in this thread!!!

 

[noelwr]

HH - priceless pic of A!

LV - at IKEA I also got a little creature light called Spoka. if you press it once, it turns on and then turns from green to blue and back, press it again and it stays on the current color and press it a 3rd time and it turns off. I use it for when Skye wakes up in the middle of the night and I need to find her pacifier.

Lanie - I'm all caught up on SYTYCD. I think my favorites are Melanie and Tadd.

- - -

AFU, Skye has woken up really early the past 2 days. 4am this morning, wide awake and bushy-tailed and wanting to play but not content to play on her own in her crib. then screaming at 5am and requiring an early breakfast as she was ravenous, and then completely conked out once done. she can pivot well on her tummy and do really good push-ups. she can get her knees under her butt and push herself backwards, but forwards crawling isn't happening yet. funny enough, she makes different babbling sounds when on her tummy then when on her back or sitting. usually they are mostly vowel sounds, but on her tummy they sound like aamamababaummamaohmmomabom... so she has said Mama several times now, though of course not on purpose.

Skye able to drink her bottle on her own when she is on her back, but only for very short periods:


and being her usually silly self

 

[AllieLuv83]

We are continuing to explore foods in our household. He has tried some beef, I got some chuck top blade steaks and cooked it in the slow cooker, once finished it fell apart like pulled beef. He really enjoyed it with some sweet potatoes with a little bit of the juices on top. He tried rice and beans, the beans were a huge hit, he kept gobbling them down one by one, the rice he was just so so about. He also tried beets which he REALLY loved. I cooked them and then grated them (the way my mom prepares them) and he gobbled that down as well.

 

[random_thought]

I started p90x last night and felt like death and just wanted to fall in bed. I got 3 hours of sleep. And this morning my oatmeal tastes like crap. Oh and if one more girl comes up to me in the grocery store to see the baby and then proceeds to talk about how her own baby sleeps through the night...I may end up punching her straight in the boob.
</pity party>

 

[Graff_Pink]

Thank you, Skippy - am going to do that! This is one of the drawbacks of moving away from our families - seeking out baby-care services, which in a new town where we don't know anyone, well, it's scary! But I have been told by some of my husband's work associates that Boston is a "nanny haven" of sorts, so I shouldn't have a problem. Leaving your baby to be cared for by anyone is a scary thing, I guess! Thanks again for the suggestion.

 

[somethingshiny]

rt~ Your post made me chuckle. Hope that you get better sleep tonight and that there is no boob-punching in your future.

 

[noelwr]

I had my port-a-cath operation on Tues, and chemo yesterday, and it was so much better getting the needle in there than them prodding into my little sensitive arm veins a couple of times! so glad I got this thing.

luckily Skye stopped waking up at 4 am and can now sleep until 6:30.

we had 3 days of warm weather, so I pimped Skye's ride, summer-style:

 

[Skippy123]

Noel, I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers that chemo continues to go well. Oh my gosh, you have all the coolest baby gear!! I love that; your lo looks so stylish!!!

BLISS, I hope you pop in here

Well I had a dental procedure done on Monday so hubby had to take off of work yesterday since it hurt a bit. I got to sleep yesterday during the day. We are hoping Evan comes home soon of course. We miss him. Oh and Miles gained 11 ounces since last week! YAY!
Hope all the beautiful Mommas and babies have a great 4th of July. We have a big fire going on our here (Los Alamos fire) so we will just stay in and relax. Hope everyone is safe

 

[lliang_chi]

Hey mamas just wanted to ping that babysteals.com is having a Halo sleep sacks sale. I know some folks love them.


~LC

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Noel-hope you're feeling OK today-love Skye's stylish ride. What stroller system is that? So futuristic looking!

Skippy-YAY for Evan coming home soon! I bet you guys are dying to have him with you at this point. How are things going with the fires? Are you safe? I see Aimee's posts every day on FB and think of my friends in the SW.

As some of you know, DH and I are playing "parents" to my brother Henry this summer. He's 18 and is off to college in the fall. He's staying with us and working with my husband as an intern. Aidan and I played hookey on Tuesday and we took Henry to the beach to celebrate his last day of freedom. We had an awesome time!

PIcture #1-Aidan at the beach, loving the sand!

Picture #2-Aidan and Henry enjoying an ice cream (Aidan's first, he loves chocolate!)

 

[Puppmom]

Noel, that is the fanciest stroller I've ever seen!

HH, A just looks like he is such fun to have around. He looks like he has a sense of humor!

...I'll make a proper post at some point!

 

[noelwr]

HH - it's the Stokke stroller. I love that she sits so high. Aidan looks like he's having a great time with Uncle Henry! chocolate ice cream... yum. I never realized that Boston is near a beach. by the way, does A ever try to eat the sand or does he not put everything in his mouth?

puppmom - how is your finger and how was the photo shoot?

Skippy - it will be so wonderful when Evan comes home and your family finally complete.

- - -

Skye pooed 6x yesterday! and it's not diarrhea. how one little girl can poo so much is beyond me. here she is this morning. I brought her to day care earlier than usual as she didn't want to fall back asleep after her morning bottle. I'm surprised she didn't lunge for the pillow like she usually does.

 

[geri]

Gosh, I have so much catching up to do. Where does the time go - I blink and two weeks have gone by!

Lanie - the 6 month pic of A with his lamb is so sweet! He is such a cutie.

HH - A really looks like a little man, wise beyond his years!

Allie - C always looks so happy. So glad he really seems to have taken to his solids now.

Cat - I hear you on going back to work (From memory we are in the same field and the hours aren't family friendly )). I am due back at the beginning of August and dreading it. I have started doing some one-off project work here and there which I hope will help me ease back into it a bit more gently and I'm also hoping to negotiate a 4 day week, but I'm dreading handing my LO over to someone else.

SS - That pic of Lily and Baby T made me laugh!

Pupp - Hope your finger is on the mend!

Graff - Good luck with the nanny hunt. We have to find one too but I keep putting it off because I think I am just in denial that I have to go back to work and leave my LO with someone else.

Skippy - I hope Evan is home with the family soon. It must be so hard not to have him with you.

Noel - Good luck with the next round of your treatment. Skye is just a classic - she looks so sweet and innocent but I suspect there is a whole lot of cheekiness in there as well!

AFM, Claudia turned 5 months this week. She has started teething so she is chomping on everything she can lay her hands on and has taken to hitting her fist against her head constantly while eating which is a little disturbing but apparently nothing to worry about. She seems to be sleeping less since we started solids so we are taking it slowly. She doesn't want to sit or lie still at all and rolled from her back to her tummy for the first time today which is a little scary because I really do not want to unswaddle her at night. She normally loves the camera but definitely did not want her 5 month picture taken so I have attached the ones I could manage!

 

[somethingshiny]

Hello, ladies! Sorry I've been MIA. I had a migraine start Sat. Went to ER sat and sun, lived on vicodin Mon and Tues, back to dr wed, and felt alright yesterday. Today I just feel worn out but no pain, woot!

Lily started crawling! Monday she decided to start crawling and getting into everything while I was in a drug-induced haze and watching Baby T. awesome. She also started pulling up. Her check-up was this morn. She weighs 27lbs 15 oz and is 31". Not much weight gain in the last 5 months since quitting her meds. She's in 99th percentile for height and still off the charts for weight, but her curve is starting to meet up with "normal."

One yr old in 2 weeks!!!

Taking Lily to the parade and carnival on the 4th. JT freaked out at his first 4th of July so we'll see how it goes with Lily. We won't stay for fireworks. We'll come back for naps and then just watch out town's little firework show from the in-laws driveway. I can take Lily in if she starts to freak and JT can still have fun.

Have a great weekend!!!

 

[Puppmom]

Geri, Claudia is too cute! I love that little round face. Don’t you hate when they don’t cooperate with the pics no matter how much of a show you put on?

Noel, Skye is just so pretty. She looks like such a content child. I’m glad your treatments are easier now that you have a port!
Shiny, crawling? That’s fantastic. I can’t believe our kiddos are almost ONE YEAR OLD! I’m kinda sad.

Skippy, I sure do hope Evan can come home soon. Are they waiting for a specific milestone for his release? I’m glad Miles gained so much – that is certainly good news!

Cat, sorry you’re stressed about going back to work but what a relief that you’ve made some progress with the bottle!
AFM, my finger is feeling pretty good. I’m REALLY tempted to take the splint off for the pics tomorrow. It really does look ridiculous. I bought N the cutest outfit from Boden USA. MIL buys stuff for him from there all the time. We usually like to spend less but we got a good deal and it’s a special occasion.

Lots of things are changing with this kid. He just got his two front teeth. One is ¼ of the way in and one is ½ in. They are huge! …and cute. MIL bought him a walker which I thought was a waste of money to be honest but he loves that thing. He gets this evil laugh and chases everyone, including the dog, around the house. It hurts when he crashes into us with that thing! My dog has been seeking higher ground on the stairwell landing. We’re still not doing much in the way of solids because he likes two textures – crunchy or pureed. We haven’t been able to get him to eat anything in between like pasta or diced fruit. He does like tofu but I think that’s because I coat it with crushed up cereal. He also has taken to not eating while I’m at work. He nurses at 5am and 6am which I kind of like because it eliminated my morning pumping and I like the am cuddles! Then he’ll have about 3 ounces of pureed food and some puffs or something crunchy at 9. Then he eats zilch, nada, nothing until I get home. He usually naps 4-6 so I nurse him at 6. I don’t know if this is normal but he’s peeing and pooping normally and happier than ever so I’m not stressing. I’m pretty much freezing all of the BM I pump though which is kind of depressing. Let’s see…what else? He loves walking while you hold his hands. Oh my aching back! He pretty much hates sitting or lying down. He wants to be standing at all times. And he LOVES to read. He’s started to recognize some repeat pictures too. He can pick out babies and dogs in books now. We bought him the cutest flash cards from One Step Ahead and he loves them so maybe he’ll recognize more soon. Well, that's it for us!

Happy 4th!

 

[random_thought]

I've been waiting for some smiles to make another post....so without further ado.... Have a wonderful 4th of July everyone! (Well those of us in the united states, the rest of you just have a good weekend )

 

[CatLuver]

HH, cute pictures! I can’t wait to take C to the beach.

Noel, Skye has such pretty round eyes. That umbrella attachment on your stroller is cool. What time does Skye go to bed? C has done 7-6 just a couple times but usually 7-5 or 8-5:30, he doesn’t seem to want to go until 6 even if I put him down at 8. When Skye wakes up early do you make her stay in the crib until a certain time or do you get her? I’ve done both but I’m not sure if leaving him there conditions him to sleep longer, or just to cry.

LV, thanks for reminding me about Amazon Mom! I totally forgot about that and could have earned tons of free shipping months by now, but I didn’t. I’ll have to sign up the next time I buy something. I just bought a bunch of feeding stuff, too.

Lanie, thanks for sharing about going back to work. I’ve been dreading it for a few weeks but have come to accept it (going back after the holiday weekend). It kind of helps that C has been a crying mess during naptime since I’ve been denying him boob the last few days – so it’s been stressful unlike before when he was happy all day C won’t be getting any socialization with other babies though, because my in-laws will be taking care of him. I haven’t revealed baby C’s name, but it’s the same as one of the cuties on here

Noel, Lanie, others who successfully deswaddled – did your babies just become “ready” to be deswaddled or was it a struggle? I’ve tried deswaddling C but he keeps jerking or rubbing his face or stretching his arms and waking himself up, and gets really mad and won’t stay asleep. Is this something he just has to learn to deal with or will he just stop doing it as he gets older? He’s 19 weeks now and still has to sleep swaddled, unless he’s in the carseat. He can break out of the MB now so I have to wrap an A&A on top of that, which makes him kind of hot!

Geri, glad to see you. Claudia is adorable! Did you ever find a way to put her down for naps? C used to nurse to sleep, but since I’m going back to work, he can’t do that anymore. I’ve been trying to train him the last few days by not letting him nurse during the day, and he is VERY mad and won’t go to sleep unless he’s in the swing (reverting to his younger days). If I try to put him in the crib, he screams bloody murder. Enjoy the rest of your time off.

SS, congrats on almost one year! That’s an accomplishment.

Pupp, I think C is going to be like your little guy and starve himself while I’m at work. During the past few days when I have denied him the boob during the day time, first he took 6 oz of milk mixed with cereal, then 4 oz, and today only 3 oz for all of 9 hours I hope he’ll still get enough to eat/drink during the 4 feedings I will be able to give him – 2 in the morning and 2 after work. I hope he doesn’t start “reverse cycling.”

So the 1 oz bottle success was a one off and the boy has refused the bottle ever since. I’ve tried a little cup and a syringe, both of which haven’t really worked. The only think that somewhat works is spoon feeding milk mixed with rice cereal, but he still won’t take more than 6 oz all day. And it makes a huge mess all over his face and arms which for some reason is causing an awful rash, even though I wipe him down afterward.

 

[noelwr]

Catluver - Skye goes to bed usually between 7:30-8 and sleeps til 6:30. sometimes she falls asleep drinking her last bottle, and sometimes we have to play the Hello Kitty projector thing 3x (it runs for 5 minutes) before she will pass out. if she wakes up earlier than 6, I just give her the pacifier and hope she falls back asleep. those 4 nights that she woke up at 4:30 am, she was wide awake and hungry so I had to give her the bottle (she only drank half, so I gave the 2nd half when she woke up again a couple of hours later). after her 6:30 bottle, I change her, then put her back to bed and go back to bed myself. she is usually wide awake but falls asleep quickly on her own for another 2 hours. it was only on Friday that she wouldn't go back to sleep. re deswaddling, Skye was really ready as she was 6 months old. she was even rolling in her swaddle. as soon as we were sure she wouldn't wake herself up scratching her face, she moved to the sleep sack, no problem. a plus of deswaddling is that her hands are free to grab her pacifier, as long as she can see it. (ETA, don't know if I answered your question about waking early. since early on, we have always given her the bottle when she wakes up in the morning and then put her right back to bed for a couple of hours more of sleep... so not sure if that is conditioning or not. I never take her out of her bed to play before 8:30 am. sometimes she wakes up and just plays on her own in her crib. but then again, she only cries in the morning if she's hungry. so as long as she is fed, she is content.)

rt - you look so proud, as you should be! have a great long weekend.

puppmom- that's so funny about your dog seeking higher ground! wow, how does N go without food from 9 to 6??? Skye has something to eat/drink every 2 hours which means I have to plan my whole day around her food schedule. N must really not be hungry as I don't think he'd be able to take a 2 hour nap if he was starving. I think as long as he isn't getting dehydrated, it should be ok.

shiny - sorry to hear about the migraine. I've heard that it can be quite a horrible condition. yay for Lily crawling!

geri - I too worried about the swaddle once Skye started rolling at 4.5 months, but she still slept swaddled for another 1.5 months. the first few weeks she didn't roll in bed yet (but watch out for the changing table!). then when she did, she would start crying when she ended up on her tummy. then she just learned to sleep on her tummy. now (no longer swaddled), she can roll from her tummy onto her back in bed, but won't do it on the floor!

 

[Deelight]

Loving all the new pics this is a fly by post as I'm posting from hubbys phone and it is a pain I lurk daily and love reading the updates

Cat L grew out of the miracle blanket a couple of weeks ago so since then I have been using the woombie she loves it and so do I it is easier and gives some freedom of movement it is winter here so I am keeping her swaddled I have a convertabile and a winter woombie but she likes the convertabile best they have a bunch of styles

Noel good luck with your treatment

Will try and post in the next few days