Introducing "head of household," my toddler!

[lmintzer]

Wow, Susan--our 1st year experiences are strikingly similar (Jack was also breech, he had latching and other bf problems that persisted for 4 1/2 months, he rarely slept, and was colicky). He also has reddish (well, maybe strawberry blond) hair (dh is a red head). He just now is starting to play independently a little bit--so there is hope.

Boy, oh boy, I know firsthand how tough it is to struggle through those feelings about your baby/child being different. It affects your self-esteem, your sanity--pretty much every aspect of your life. There definitely is something to what your mom said about accepting kids like this for who they are. There is some inner peace that comes with not trying to change them. Of course, there are behaviors that can be shaped/changed now that they are older and more communicative. But as babies? Like you, I believe there wasn't much to do except love them and try to wade through those difficult months. I often felt like I was the only one with a "spirited" or "high needs" baby. I took some comfort from a bb on babycenter.com called "Parenting High Needs Children". The women there were so wonderful--and everyone was going through similar challenges. I also re-read and had my husband read "Raising Your Spirited Child" (sorry--don't have author right here). It's a fabulous book. I used to use it with clients, lol. So it was kind of funny and ironic to be applying it to my own life.

I'm glad to hear that things are feeling better now and that you are able to enjoy Nicholas so much. We are enjoying Jack immensely. He amazes us--and cracks us up--daily. : )

Lisa
& Jack, 4/20/01
& Little Brother, e.d.d., 12/15/03

[twins r fun]

This is neat-I would love for things to get more active over here. There are so many posts on the BB board that I just don't bother reading anymore because I either can't clearly recall an answer that would help or have read the same question and answers 800 times before. It will be nice to have our own little place that is just as active!

Caleb and Jacob will turn two on October 30th. I had always heard that the first year with twins is the hardest, but I think that is wrong, wrong, wrong! So far the second year has been much more difficult, mostly because it is so high energy. Both boys were fairly easy babies and are VERY active toddlers so I guess that explains my opinion. They were born 7 weeks early and had to stay in the hospital for 2.5 and 5 weeks. We had a fairly typical babyhood-kind of rough first 3 months (including some medical problems), started sleeping through the night at 4 months but then would stop for teething, starting solids, etc. They weren't consistent with it for quite awhile longer. I thought from 4 months to 13 months were really easy. though.

Then we hit 14 months and started walking and things fell apart. Now it's constantly two boys running in opposite directions and finding something to get into! Jacob and Caleb both have a huge fondness for sports-including balls, bats, raquets, clubs, baskets, and watching any sport on TV or in person. My family always jokes that Jacob is going to make millions as a basketball star because he has a great shot from about 4 feet away at a hoop that is about 2 feet above his head. Caleb is going into golf, baseball, or tennis because he's got a swing you wouldn't believe. That is basically their main interest, though they are starting to get into coloring and playdoh now, too. Books, music, toys, etc they could take or leave but they gotta have their balls. They also like the Wiggles and the Teletubbies. Both are very affectionate, full of giggles, and curious. Jacob is slightly more calm than Caleb, more easily frightened, but more outgoing with strangers. Caleb is sillier, more demanding, and more physical. Both are somewhat language delayed, but making huge progress especially in expressive language. They get along pretty well-share with each other and with friends. We get the occasional fight over very special toys, but mostly they respect each other's space, which is a nice change from several months ago!

Though exhausting, I am definitely enjoying the transition from babies to little boys!

[SeekerMage]

Angela is more of a preschooler then a toddler, but she is still my baby! She is just about three and a half and going on thirty!
She is a motor mouth to say the least and a quiet afternoon in this house is a rare treat. Her speech is out of this world, some of the things she comes up with just make us laugh and we laugh quite a bit in this house. Just today she asked me why I pinched daddys nipples...huh? With further explaination we found out she meant pimples as I had "popped" one for him the other day that was bothering him and she must have overheard. LOL....the things kids say.

She is also a HUGE drama queen. Everything is said with such expression and feeling that she puts her whole being into all her thoughts and actions. Angela is also very caring and lovey. She loves to cuddle, she is a mommy to all her babies and our two cats whom she tortures to no end. Right now she loves taking care of me and is EXTREMELY protective of me. I was crying on the phone to my mom last night over not being able to find a crib and after calming down and having a nice conversationg Angela wanted to talk to my mom. Well she ripped my mom a new one going on and on about how she was going to take care of mommy and not to make mommy cry and on and on she went. When I explained that Noni didnt make me cry she said well I take care of you mommy and I dont care you dont cry....and on and on she went rambeling and not making sense but very direct in what she way trying to get across. She definitly has a mind of her own and will set you straight. She can be very sassy...and we are trying to work on that, but its a tough one because sometimes you cant help but laugh. Especially since we started a going joke about my mom about how all she does is bitch bitch bitch....we say mash mash mash mash mash sorta a mumble of bitch....or nag nag nag...well she knows just where to say this in all the appropriate or not so appropriate times. Like at the dinner table...she was told that was not nice...as we all laughed under our breath...its sooo hard when they are soo cute!

One of her favorite sayings is "I keep you Mommy" or "Can I keep you?" When we were going through the first custody of her we could not believe that we were finally going to be able to keep her so we always kissed and hugged her and said can I keep you and it has to this day stuck. THere are lots of I love yous...and she even reminds us if we havent said it or that she just wants to remind us.

Angela is a very old soul caught in a childs body. THere are days that I look at her and she looks so grown up, and others that I just see my little baby. She has been through so much in her young life with the whole custody issue and she has come through completly well adjusted , loving and nurturing. We have really lucked out and cant wait to add Lil'bit the mix. I know she will make a great big sister...she already talks to her baby sister in my belly...and hers for that matter LOL and everything she finds is...this will be good for my baby.

Anyhow...thats my Angela...who soon I will finally be able to keep! Seems she is one of the oldest on the toddler board, but atleast there is a better place she fits rather then the baby board! I hope I will have some good advice to give and stories to share....thanks for the opportunity for the introduction! :)

[mom2kandj]

We currently have some Yves Veggie Cheese in our fridge and it is weird. The consistency and mouth feel are kinda slimey! YUCK! Oh well! I'll check at Vons for the Galaxy stuff and see if that works!

BTW - LMK when you want to go to Disneyland and I'll have my buddies sign us in for free! :) If you've got a good double stroller, the 9 month old shouldn't be a problem! Believe me, I'd rather take a 9 month old than Godzilla(Jack) who has no fear! Lucky for me, he doesn't mind riding as long as he has water and snacks! We like to keep it short and rarely go for more than 4 hours! I had thought about posting on the Baby Board and here in Toddlerland about trying to set up a LA/OC/San Diego area get together! You think we could roundup some interest? If we get my friends to sign us in, we can also visit CA Adventure in the same day, too! My kids love the Playhouse Disney show and the water fountains in Flik's Fun Fair! Katie has been asking when we are going again! We were there just a month ago! :) Please PM me so that we don't add too many replies to our cool intro thread and we'll try to set something up!

Rose
mom 2 katie (33 months)
& Jack (16 months)

[jadamom]

Jada is 20 months. She's usually pretty happy and easy-going with an occasional stubborn streak. She's very sensitive and needs time to adjust to new people and places. Once she's comfortable, she's playful, giggly, and loud. She loves to dance and color. She loves all of her books and has a strong attachment to "Bear," as well as to mama and daddy. Our most difficult times are due to her picky eating, throwing food, and reluctance to go to sleep. She also refused a bottle after 6 weeks of life, requiring me to be present at every feeding until she was 1. Now she's much more independent. She drinks from her sippy cup, eats with a fork, and plays by herself sometimes. She is truly a joy and a great source of pride.

-Lydia
mom to Jada, 12/31/01

[luvbeinmama]

I've never done a bio on the boards. I am so glad people are coming over to the Toddler boards and that they put in this new lounge!!!

DS is 3-1/2, and I think probably the oldest here (Jan '00). He LOVES his stories and his books and can sit through really lengthy stories one after another. We potty trained earlier this year, and I am SO glad we waited until he was 3+. With a combination of rewards, we were able to get through the major battle in about 6-8 weeks. Now we just have to get him to keep his pants on after he pees! He just LOVES running around naked! He really likes Elmo and Veggie Tales and lately he is a different "hero" each day. Sometimes it's Batman, sometimes it's LarryBoy, or Wolverine, Spiderman, etc. We don't watch TV at home except for occassional movies (which he really likes) and that really helped us in the potty training effort. The worst "revoked priviledge" for him is his naptime or nightnight stories. I really loved his 3rd year (age 2-3). He didn't tantrum except a couple of times before he could really communicate. And just watching his little imagination blossom was incredible! Of course, the last couple months, the tantrums have shown up, but I think they are under control after he got himself locked in his room a couple of times. We try to explain EVERYTHING to him, and he is really contrary if we ever forget. He hasn't really played by himself really well. He's always coming in to check on me every few minutes. We've started a parent education class that doubles as pre-school (I have to "work" with the kids about 1 every 3 classes, the other days DS goes by himself.). DS just loves it. I started him at 18 months at church going to class by himself every Sunday, so when we started "teacher & me" classes last winter, he was just fine, no separation problems at all. He really loves his sister, but as with a lot of older siblings, is a bit rough with her, and sometimes he goes out of his way to knock her over or play with what she has, or whatever. We are working on that. He has recently pretty much given up the afternoon nap. I could write a book, but I think I'll move on now...

DD will be one next month, and is just darling. She was a lot rougher in the sleep dept than DS, I think partially because we didn't let her cio like DS because we didn't want her to wake him up. Also, partially because instead of CIO, she would cry and get worse, and worse, until it took a while just to calm her down. I remember walking with her between 2 & 5 am daily. For a few months it seemed DH & I were only getting 4 hours of sleep a night, and not consecutive! Now that is all past, though, and she sleeps like a champ at night. Unfortunately, a mini-nap in the late morning can ruin her afternoon nap, and then she ends up getting REALLY cranky and going down early for the night. I have to say scheduling the 2nd is much harder since the 1st already has activities scheduled and you are used to doing things at particular times. Anyway, she is actively pulling-up, but not cruising yet. And right now she is mommy's girl (daddy is chopped liver!). This makes going to Bible Study on Wednesday's interesting for DH as she just screams when he tries to put her down. As soon as I get home, I rock her a bit and put her down. She rolls over and goes to sleep. LOL! Poor DH!! Of course the whole night routine always goes better when it's just me because DH works 2-10pm and it's usually just me and the kids.

I haven't taken the kids to Disneyland yet, although I think DS would LOVE it. I think we'll wait until DD is a bit older. We did go to Legoland for DS's big reward when he finished potty training (always remember a bathing suit and towel!). He has so much fun there!! A bit of a drive for us, but totally worth it!!

I'm not a "career" woman, and never really wanted to be. I'm doing now what I've always wanted to do... being a sahm. I thank God that we are able to do this on DH's salary! I volunteer my time in MOMS Club and will probably be volunteering to do things at DS's school. I may pick up some part-time work after both kids are in school, but we'll cross that bridge later. I like crafting and sewing, but hardly find time to do either right now.

That's about it for now. This could take hours if I kept going!

[Roleysmom]

Hi, everyone. It's good to "meet" you and your little ones. This post is making it not so scary for me to jump from the BBB board to the toddler board. Thank you! Roley turned 21 months last week. The time has gone by so fast. It's been hard for me to accept that my baby is growing up, especially because I think she'll be our only child. But I have to admit that I do find myself wondering what she's going to do next and am greatly enjoying all the new things she does.

She said her longest sentence to date a couple of weeks ago, "I need more ice cream now please!" It was a hoot! She is very verbal and has just started to pretend, which is a lot of fun. She puts her thumb and first finger together and comes up to you and says, "Ice cream" or "French fries." We just started playing with play dough a couple of weeks ago and she likes that too. She gives me orders about what cookie cutters to use and I make her shapes. I have a great homemade playdough recipie that's very easy to make if anyone is interested.

We also have a big dog and two cats. Roley loves them, often a little too much. We are working on being gentle.

She's always been a good sleeper (knock wood) but it is getting harder to put her down for a good long nap. I hope that's just a short phase because I'm not ready for her to stop napping!

I'm a 36 year old part-time WAHM and find it hard to keep everything in balance. I really appreciate all of the advice and support I've gotten from the BBB boards and look forward to participating in this community.



Paula - mom to Roley Julia 01-04-02

[ismommy]

I would love the hommade paydo recipe. I was just thinking of trying t make some tday.

Helene
mommy to Isabella 9/19/01

[Roleysmom]

Hi, Helene. I started a different thread with the recipe. I bet you and Isabella will have a lot of fun with it.

Paula -- mom to Roley Julia 01-04-02

[cdlamis]

Jumping in a little late to introduce myself.

My daughter, Julia, is 16 months old. And the light of our lives. She has always been and is an easy baby. She can be feisty at times but is usually good tempered. She loves to play by herself and the dogs but is a great cuddler too! She loves to give hugs and open mouth kisses. She is a riot and ske knows it. She laughs at everything. The funniest thing about Julia is that she says "HI!" to everyone we see. And loud too- especially when they don't acknowledge her. She says about 4 words and signs about 5 words.

Julia is very inquisitive and has been since birth. She doesn't imitate a lot or say a lot but you can tell she is absorbing everything. I took her to swim lessons and she would never try to blow bubbles like the other babies but loved to push my face in the water to see me do it!

She sleeps extremely well- I know I am lucky. She usually sleeps from 6:30pm-6:30am every day with a 2-3 nap. I am spoiled by her schedule and it will be huge adjustment when baby #2 comes someday.

I work part-time (only one actual day in the office) so I basically consider myself a SAHM and love it.

Glad to see there is a Toddler Board now!

Daniella
Mom to Julia 6-13-02
http://www.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=...21b32dc745c42b