In Search of Guest Blogger

Well dear friends, my time to blog about dear Kate is over for a while. (And I am insulted by those who assume that such a message is proof of incarceration.) I have been specifically forbidden to come near my little angel by our pediatrician due to the long list of symptoms I have that closely resemble the list for swine flu.

I am currently holed up in the bedroom, thankful we have an attached bathroom, and feeling regretful that our color choice for the walls is so...minty... I believe I have turned a corner though, as this dose of excellent writing and keen wit is proof of, and shall indeed mend. (This morning, I personally felt that was in doubt, but my dear husband, in response to my yell through the door of "I think I'm dying" told me that "Those who are dying are not prone to hyperbole." I tried to untangle that answer but alas, my brain could not solve the riddle, and I was left to fear that I was, indeed, dying.)

In this time of need, I call upon those who see my daughter to take pictures, write stories, and generally document her adorable little life so that her mother, bless her, can peek at her again. This small wish is all that is left in my poor heart.

Now that I have spent what little reserve of energy I have left, I return to sleep, my doting companion with whom I must have a wrestling pillowfight in my jammies to keep beside me.

Be well, my friends. And Happy New Year to you.

Let me sleep, please?

Kate asked for a nap today for the first time ever. Perhaps in response to her very busy last few days, or perhaps because she hasn't been sleeping well, around 10 a.m. this morning she signed "horsey" then "nap" then "horsey" again. What is one to do but let the kid sleep? So she slept. When she awoke she went off and played with her other auntie, and her uncle, and dinnered with her mom's extended family. She had her 6 hours of non-family time. Okay, maaaybe 24. Now she spends the next few days in a very different sort of whirlwind with my family. Let's see if this time on Monday she's begging for a nap again...

Fear and Awe

Kate has a little bit of Old Testament style idol worship going on. Her cousin Mason is the "it" thing right now. So much so that "Ma" now refers not to her dear mother, but to Mason. This "Ma" is generally coupled with the "Where is it?" sign as she searches from room to room to find her beloved cousin. But, as any good Old Testament story goes, there is also loud clapping thunder, shaking earth, and some calamity. So while she often goes in search of her dear cousin, she just as often runs away shrieking.

She is picking up some tricks. Her current goal is to learn to jump off of Grandma's treadmill like her cousin can do. He demonstrates this to her frequently with helpful "see, Kate? like this! i'm FLYING!". Any attempts on auntie's part to remind him he can't fly ends in an arguement of "yes I can's" which just can't be effectively counter-argued. So far Kate has only succeeded in falling off the treadmill, but she's still trying. One more day and she might have it.

Gluttony, mirth, and bike riding

I am almost too tired to write this entry. Not because I have been sleep deprived. Kate has actually slept fairly well here, although she has been waking at the ungodly hour of 5am. Rather, I am exhausted from eating. This that I speak of is a special type of eating. Eating that I was not born into but am trying to learn to keep up with. Chunks of meat for each meal followed by and sometimes paired with sugar in various forms. I thought my mother had taught me about sugar. She had a dedicated sugar drawer in our kitchen filled with all kinds of sweet treats. Christmas in my in-laws home though is a whole new adventure into sweets and deliciousness. Although my tastebuds have delighted, my digestion and my blood sugar are not sure how to manage this rollercoaster and I might be forced to take a break soon.

Not that Kate has noticed. The poor girl is living the life her hypocritical parents have forced her into: one of no processed foods and no white sugar. She isn't going to know what hit her one of these days.

Despite the fact she isn't operating as though on a sugar high she has been moving as though on one. Her three year old cousin got a bike from Santa and he has been practicing riding in in the circle that connects kitchen-dining room-living room-and hallway. My sweet, quiet daughter has been chasing him every moment of his biking. Her one year old little legs racing in her attempt at a jog as she tries to catch him. As a result, she has been crashing, and crashing hard. For Kate, crashing looks like happy-energetic Kate on steroids. Which is followed fairly rapidly by cranky, whiney, moaney Kate. Today she was actually so tired she almost fell asleep while eating lunch: head hunched to the side against the headrest of the high chair (so THAT'S why there is a headrest to the highchair!), eyes slowly sinking closed... Poor kid. She then took an almost-three hour nap to try to recover for the second act.

Yesterday she enjoyed watching her cousin open lots of presents while curled up on daddy p's lap eating breakfast. She also enjoyed stealing these new toys to play with when said cousin was either napping or looking away. Her unaware parents brought no presents for her and were saved by her grandparents who purchased two noise making toys (a remote control and a pretend camera) that make music that she was thrilled to dance to. This did not prevent her from stealing her cousin's new drill as he napped and walking around the house "drilling holes" in the wall. Apparently my dad has done enough work on our new house that she knew instantly knew what to do with it. I was very surprised and happy to know that in a few years I will no longer be responsible for hanging anything up, or affixing anything to walls.





Today she met her first cat (liked, but didn't want to get near) and her first horse (neither liked nor wanted to get near). All in all I say this proves just how brilliant my little daughter is. It has been in the twenties here with a fierce wind though so we all bundled up mightily to make the outing and miss kate was more than happy to come back inside after not too long.

Oh winter day

Blessings to you all on this day we are asked to remember how to truly love ourselves and others and pursue this blazing love through all the pain, sacrifice and struggle that is sometimes required.

Snacking on the go

on the fly...

the day started with daddy p and I waking at three because the power went out. neither of us was very successful at getting back to sleep so we laid there until the alarm went off at five.

our flight was permenantly delayed so instead of going through dallas we switched to houston. our eight am flight turned into a ten a.m. flight. after getting some lunch we are chilling here until our next flight at two.

the good news is that not only has kate been in a great mood all morning, she took a forty minute nap on our first flight easy peasy like.

so all in all we are having a lovely day.

Proper Hygiene

We have just started getting Kate used to the idea of brushing her teeth before bed. It began with her just getting used to the tooth brush. Now she likes to practice by brushing our teeth, but will also move the brush around in her own mouth. She actually asks to brush her teeth now. Hopefully this will keep up for the next fifty years.

 

 

Getting in the spirit

Winter is officially here. We enjoyed our first day after the solstice with 70 degree weather. Odd, but Kate enjoyed being able to roam free and unencumbered outside. Leaves are a favorite these days: tossing them, crunching them, dropping them, collecting them, and throwing them.







To compensate for the weather, and to help along the mood some we went to look at some Christmas lights tonight.







She struggled with it. She was tired and not happy she was up and outside when she is normally in the bathtub. She wouldn't let us hold her and only crawled into the stroller when she decided she was hungry for our make-due dinner. She wanted mom, then only dad, then only mom, on her terms and in her way. We managed as we could, and Daddy P and I enjoyed ourselves as much as we could, but we ended the evening a little quicker than we'd planned and headed home.

Tonight's behavior along with other things today have really driven home how in touch I am with her. Whether a product of similar temperaments, or being a mostly-stay-at-home mom, I definitely know what she wants before anyone else, and know what each tone of voice means and what will happen if I choose action or inaction. What I don't know is if this is good (nurturing, supporting, comforting) or bad (spoiling, over-identifying, smothering). Ah, shades of gray... I think it's like having a superpower and knowing when to use it for good and not evil. The *knowing* is not the bad part. It would be the always doing what she wants regardless of the consequences that would be the bad part...

Yesterday we went to the children's museum and I realized how the flipside of feeling safe and supported means being more comfortable venturing out. This side has not shown up much, and it made me want to rush home and order those "your phone number as a temporary tattoo" stickers for her so that someone would always know who she belongs to. That and I started scanning her outfit for places I could write my phone number.






In our rough spots today I started introducing Kate to some chanting. I started doing this several months ago during nap transitions to help her quiet and soothe herself, and it worked really well for both of us (me for when she's crying, and her to help stop crying). I bought a beautiful album of kirtan music that I've been using in my own life, and decided that today Kate would learn some. So, we chanted through the rough spots, and I for one felt better for it.

Day Saver

 

Thank you Daddy P, for this amazing present. I had put it on my wishlist after seeing R's amazing contraption in her kitchen. Today Daddy P found one on craigslist and procured it for me with a snap! No better sight than two dishwashers in the kitchen!

Preparing for the inevitable

I decided I would rather endure suffering here, at home, in familiar turf, than at the in-laws when we are celebrating Christmas.

We began today by getting Kate to nap in her tent. Now, she used to love her tent. As a baby the darkness and way it enclosed her provided a lot of comfort. But the last time she slept in it was back in May I think, and she doesn't really remember it. For the past few days she's played in it in the living room, then we moved it to her bedroom and read books in it. Today we took the next step. I put her to sleep in it. I mean, I put her to screaming in it. Maybe she just has to cry it out, I thought. The competing voice chiming in, "Kate has never fallen asleep by crying it out." I decided to wait ten minutes.

I sat, listening to her scream for ten neverending minutes as I clockwatched and tried to block out the sound. I contemplated getting out the camera to record the hideous sound for some twisted idea of posterity. Ten minutes finally passed. I went in and sat next to her, comforting her with words but trying to ignore her (pleas to play, and signs to get out). I left again for fifteen minutes this time with a very similar scene. When I returned, she'd pooped which required me to start our naptime routine over.

This time I was plum out of juice. The thought of making her cry any more broke my heart. I just imaged all the cortisol flowing through her body, rewiring her delicate little neuropathways, making changes to her poor little brain because I wanted her to sleep in a tent. Ah, knowledge. How cruel you are to a mother. Plus, I couldn't stand the idea of her being alone and scared. I was sitting in the living room, imagining myself on my death bed, terrified of the inevitable but surrounded by those I love. I know, I'm bizarre. I knew that I want those I love around me when I'm upset and scared. Why not validate my little one in the same way? So I hunkered down next to the tent in her room.

She first tried to engage me in a game of peek a boo. Then she cried and whined. Then when that didn't get results she tried to unzip the tent. That lasted, I kid you not, twenty minutes. It's a miracle she didn't figure it out. I suggested she cuddle with horsey. She cried, but went and got horsey and cuddled. Forty minutes into my hunkering down she finally laid down, but continued thrashing about in the tent. I fell asleep. Somewhere in there she did, too.

Let's hope bedtime takes less time and doesn't involve me sleeping on her floor.

It's never too late, or too early, to spy on your child

Kate is almost 15 months. So you may wonder why at this late stage in the game I went out yesterday and blew $200 on a video monitor. Let me begin by fully rationalizing the expense. First of all, the same used monitors on ebay were going for only $30-$50 less. Not that $50 is chump change, but there's a certain amount of risk in buying ebay crap, er, merchandise, so we opted to go for new. Then there are the wide options in the store. For $100 you can buy a big ole honking screen that is like a mini cathode ray tube. For another $50 you can get a teeny tiny screen. They bait you for another $25 on top of that for a larger screen. And then, for $200 you can get a handheld "large" screen that's digital (so that you won't end up watching your neighbor's baby instead of yours). So yes, I blew two hundred buckaroos on something I swore I wouldn't buy.

But here's the thing... it is so addicting to watch! It's only been a day, but man oh man, I'm finding things out about Kate I never knew! For one, she rolls around for at least twenty minutes before falling asleep. She sounds asleep, but she's standing up, repositioning herself, flipping her head to the other side of the bed, tossing horsey around, rolling on her right side, her left, and then, finally, tucking her legs under with the butt-up happiness. All the time horsey is clutched carefully to her chest.

What brought us to this point was the other night. She was waking up every hour with teething pain, and then at midnight we broke down and went it. (I think I mentioned this -- mysteriously all teething pain was relieved by leaving her bedroom. Ring a bell?) Well, after much more crying, and much heartache on Daddy P's on my own part, she slept until morning. Come to find out, she had thrown out horsey sometime in the midst of it all and had been forced to sleep horseyless! I didn't know this was possible! We both felt so bad we decided then and there to buy a camera.

In case you're wondering, it's the Summer something one for $200. One day in and I'm totally stoked about it. Awesome picture (even in Kate's pitch-black room), and a nice size screen. The thing weighs nothing and has a video-off option so it works like an audio monitor. Very nice. Plus a rechargeable battery so I can stop buying so many freaking AAs.

Weather here was gorgeous today, which allowed her to get outside and play for a little bit. She was very interested in the leaves on the ground and carrying them across the yard to put them in her bucket. She tasted some dirt, moved around my pots, and checked out the bark on the tree. A pretty good day all in all!

My little monster

The Plus: 30 minutes that I spent getting dinner ready.
The Minus: Tantruming when water play was over...

 

 

 

 

Ms. Kate's had a rough 24 hours. Last night the family was up from midnight to 2am because of a baby who, by all indications, wanted to be awake. Okay, well, it started as tooth pain, but it was miraculous how her tooth pain disappeared when she left her bedroom! She was also up numerous other times throughout the night, but got herself back to sleep on her own. Nap today lasted only 1.5 hours after a string of five solid 3 hour naps.

Today she was very clingy, as she's apt to be when hurting, so I decided to put aside my plans and hunker down with her this morning. We played and cuddled and rolled around on the floor some. She mostly whined and pouted when I wouldn't let her do what she wanted, but there were some happy smiles here and there. Then the dilemna of dinner. I was working tonight, and had to make dinner early as a result (love that crockpot!) but couldn't figure out how to cut carrots while holding a baby... So out came the chair. It was a sight really as I managed to cut the carrots and prepare the dinner while blocking the open sides of the chair so she wouldn't topple. She loved it! I couldn't believe it! Thirty freaking minutes of uninterrupted quiet time while she happily played in the water. It was a delight. I finished getting the food ready (she helped put all the ingredients in the crock pot happily) and got to just enjoy her excitement.

Then it ended. All things must, but this end was loud and screamy, with a head bang on the floor thrown in for emphasis. She then spent the rest of the day trying to push the chair over to the sink to do more water play. She even learned "her version" of the water sign in no time at all since she wanted so badly to play again.

It's so hard coming home when she's already in bed and tucked in. But tonight, I hope I don't see her until the morning...

Kate's more than a stereotype (?)

But really, Kate... a fork in the outlet? Isn't that a little cliche? (Thank goodness we own plastic forks and outlet covers!) Haha. Thwarted!

I kid you not

Kate loves goat cheese!

(did you get the pun? you didn't did you. admit it. i'll only snicker behind your back and not to your face.)

I accidentally bought lemon goat cheese at the store. Goat cheese and crackers are my evening post-dinner treat every now and again, but I only splurge on it when I can find it on sale. Well, apparently the reason for the sale was the lemon flavor which was pungent. So, what does a mom do with food that she doesn't really want to eat, and hasn't been able to hide in a recipe to feed her husband? Give it to the baby.

Smothered it on some water crackers and we had a little picnic in the kitchen. She loved it! I couldn't tell if she was enchanted by the fact I let her eat on the floor or if it was the crackers and cheese. She gobbled them up one after another though and occasionally fed me a bite.

We had a lovely day the two of us. We started by hanging out with some new friends at a coffeeshop nearby, followed by a playdate at their house. Kate took to the little boy very quickly and followed him around mimicking whatever he did. She also tried to steal his little snack cup, and his kind mama, R, graciously gave Kate her own. We came home and had a nice little lunch the two of us, followed by some independent play on Kate's part while I laundered. (I was thinking today that I need to string up my laundry-line in the new house. Maybe on the screened in porch...) Then a nap. A LONG nap. I took advantage of the nap with a variety of chores including making dinner. She woke around 3:30pm, ready for another snack and some play.

I lugged out her travel tent to start getting her used to the idea of being in it. The last time she was was probably back in June, so she doesn't much remember it. And she hasn't been in it since she could walk so the whole thing will be interesting. I spent at least a half hour actually curled up inside of it, with her crawling in and out with various toys and animals. Then we made some oatmeal crackers and popped dinner in the oven and waited for Daddy P to get off work.

It was such a relaxing and sweetly slow day! Such a blessing!

Ghee Wiz!

Paul made ghee this weekend. After just a little cajoling, and one burned attempt, we ended up with a yummy jar of ghee. Which, we have decided, is the secret to at-home Indian food! Come to find out that almost all Indian food is made with this little secret ingredient, when we made some yummy curry at home we found that ghee really made our house smell like an Indian restaurant.

Kate was so happy with the ghee that she leaned over and took a big spoonful to eat. Even horseys received some ghee loviness.

Mama's Favorite Girl

(optional title: "Why We Really Have Children: To Feel Good About Ourselves")

I was putting Kate to bed tonight, happily signing her her spanish "Mama's little baby loves shortin'" song, and putting on her post-bath diaper. As I am putting her diaper on, she signs "more." I tell her "Sorry, pumpkin, no more bath." She looks at me puzzled. She signs "more" again. I sign "More bath"? Nope. "More milk"? Nope. "More music" and voila! She signs "more music!"

Never has anyone ASKED me to sing before. So sing I did. And man she got groovy.

In other news, Kate weighs 26 pounds! No wonder my back is killing me. I am done carrying her. She can walk from now on.

Have we housebroken the baby?

Let me explain...

Monday, Kate woke up a half hour into her nap in order to poop. No more nap after that.

Tuesday, before nap I put Kate on the group and told her to go pick out a book. She did, and stood over her books pooping while she did it. I said, "You're pooping! Gonna need a new diaper (insert diaper sign here)."

Wednesday, before nap I put her down, told her again to pick out a book and go poop. She did! I labeled and signed what she was doing again.

Thursday, same story!

Friday, she pooped earlier in the morning, so I just skipped the whole "go to your corner and poop." Well, she started fussing when I picked her up after reading books to put her down for nap. Then she started signing "diaper." Stupid mom, was like, "I already changed your diaper silly." Put her down and she SCREAMED. I came back in the room after five minutes and decided to give the whole thing another go (I was figuring this was because I was gone this morning and had just gotten home and she was having a tough time with the transition... er, wrong.) So I put her down, she walks over to the corner where her bookshelf is and poops.

Duh.

She's housebroken! I'm seriously tempted to buy a baby toilet and put it by her books!

Brrr and loving it

We've been having very cold weather for our area. So cold, in fact, it flurried! So Kate has been using clothing that I am blessed to have inherited! Who knew we'd need it locally! Here she is decked out in her boots and warm coat to go out in the 28 degree weather!

New word to rival "Elly Dog"

Kate's new word is "this" and actually sounds like "this"... it comes from our pattern of her pointing at something and us saying "You want this? Or this? Or this?" So now she just points and says "this" when she wants something. It really is much simpler than learning the individual word for all the items in the house.

A Shopping Lesson

Kate's great aunt is visiting and teaching her to shop. It's going well, from a spending perspective. And a walking perspective: Kate walked most of the mall by herself. This resulted less from our intent to tire her out, and more from our frustrated attempts to open the new stroller in 27 degree weather and an unwillingness to rent a mall stroller for $5.

14 months old!

At 14 months, Miss Kate is quite the go getter. Her recent tricks are woofing at pictures of dogs and making a car sound as you push her on her push-car. She's pretty particular. We're noticing all our not-so-fun qualities shining through: Daddy P's fussiness about fabrics and clothing (Kate now tantrums for fleece pants or scratchy sweaters) and my short fuse (the other day she threw a lid across the room when she couldn't figure out how to put it on correctly). We will be working on perfecting our job of modeling coping with these weaknesses to help her deal with them better than we did.

She's some unknown weight and height, but her pants finally don't drag on the ground when she walks. She is obsessed with all things electronic (just like her grandfathers), and when she can't touch the laptop or hold the phone she, you guessed it, tantrums.

For all the tantruming, this kid has so much joy. She is the biggest cuddler and is happy to climb into your lap and read a book she's picked out. She will walk over to me cooking in the kitchen and with a sweet little sigh hug my leg before moving on to her next activity. Her cries of delight are just the most heartwarming sounds to hear. You can't top them.

Independence is all the rage. She is getting really good at feeding herself with a spoon, and wants to eat apples and bananas whole. She really wants to use a cup, although inevitably when we let her try, pouring quickly follows.