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Toddlers Today's MomsTalk Archive Hi everyone Angel was such a big girl this morning! I was trying to clean up the kitchen and she was getting into everything so I put her in her chair and gave her a bowl of cheerios with milk (first time not the last though) anyway she used the spoon and ended up having three helpings. Good because it was close to lunch. I thought Angel couldnt use a spoon I have offered her one with other food and she didnt use it, boy did she fool me. She knows how to use a fork really well for her age and I guess now when she wants to she can use a spoonn too!! Kelli - Angel's birthday was July 7th. One Grandma already told me she is buying Angel a shopping cart. We have a kitchen set given to us so I am going to clean it up and move it upstairs after christmas. I am or Santa I mean is going to bring paints, kitchen dishes and food, housekeeping set and talking barney. I already have some wooden puzzles for her too! Well that is all for now HAPPY THANKSGIVING FELLOW CANUCKS!!!! Diane Diane Morgan email: jadimorgan@home.com Sunday, October 10, 1999 at 10:51:50 (MDT)) Good morning ladies. SARAH here. I hope everyone had a great weekend. We sure did. I HATE coming back to work on Monday's!!! :( Well, HANNAH's going through a climbing stage right now, and it's driving me NUTS!!! Makes me sooo nervous. Her new favorite thing is to climb up on the couch, stand up (without holding on to anything) and then bounce. ARGH!!! Last night DH went out to get ice cream, and I had just taken a shower. Anyway, HANNAH was upstairs with me for a little bit, then went downstairs to play. I checked on her and she was standing on the couch!!!! I about crapped my pants. If she fell, she'd go right in to the coffee table. We have to stop that right away!!!! On to personals: BETH - Thanks for the Friends update!! :) MORIAH - Thanks for the PO5 update! I never received any pictures of ALEX! KELLI - HANNAH's a great eater, too. Sounds just like E! Her favorite thing is bread, too. Give her a cookie and she'll eat some of it, give her any sort of bread and the whole thing vanishes! :) She's definitely having the same tantrums E is. Very frustrating. I've just started to ignore her. LISA - WOW! You're lucky you get today off!! Thanks for the congrats on HANNAH's steps! Hope your nephew gets to feeling better soon!!! HELEN - YUCKY POOPY STORY!!!! HANNAH's still taking one bottle in the morning and 1 at night too. I need to start weaning her soon! STACEY - CONGRATULATIONS on little ALEXA!!!! I'm so happy for you guys! LEANNE - Good to hear from you. I used to get terrible heartburn when I was preggo. Went through TUMS like there was no tomorrow! Congrats on CYNTHIA being potty trained!!! :) :) TRACEY - Great to hear from you! Hope things are well!!! :) PATTY - Too cute about the eskimo kisses!!! My dad and I used to ALWAYS give each other butterfly kisses!!!! Well, that's it for now. I'd better start some work! :( :( Talk to you ladies soon!! Sarah and Hannah (13 months) email: smoore@geatoir.cfer.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 07:04:30 (MDT)) Hi everyone, Louise here. Our computer has been down for a few days - nightmare! It takes so long to catch up, and now I've got to be quick as James is waking up (typical). I can hear him babbling away to himself - soooo cute. I went in this morning when he woke up and he was holdong his teddy bear up in the air and chattering away to it and laughing. I can't believe how much I love him sometimes. I do just want to make a point though - what on earth do you think you're all doing, arranging to meet up?!! What about me, stuck out across the Atlantic?! Lol. I'm very jealous!! I've been interested to hear a couple of people mentioning weaning from bottles - I know I should start thinking about that soon but I don't know whether to just go cold turkey or take a more gradual approach. James is already so attached to his bottle. Funnily enough, he was fine when I weaned him from the breast at 6 months but I suppose I should have given him a beaker intstead of a bottle then. Just a couple of very quick personals as my boy is starting to shout for attention - how dare I think I've got some time to myself!!! DIANE - I was interested to hear about the board for spirited toddlers - I'll take a look when I have a chance as I have quite definitely got one of those! MORIAH - Belated but heartfelt HAPPY BIRTHDAY for Alex. Sorry I couldn't get on to send my congratulations on the day, glad you had a great time. One last note - I can't remember now who gave the 'Friends' update - why I am so sad that I had to read it?! We are a couple of series behind you guys and I am a real addict, but, typically, I couldn't resist the chance to look ahead! Must go, Louise & James email: rnash78035@aol.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 07:13:36 (MDT)) What a busy Monday morning I am having. It took me forever to catch up on my v-mails, e-mails, and most importantly this TT board. I took Colton to the Dr. Friday morning and found out that he has a double ear infection. Poor thing. I never even guessed that! I was on my way to drop him off at daycare and he had a big coughing fit. When I looked over at him he looked so miserable. I felt like the worst mommie just thinking about going to work and leaving him at daycare. I quickly called work to say I was staying home with my sick little boy and had to turn around to go to the pharmacy for his prescription. He is feeling much better after a couple of days on his medication. We had a great weekend. We were at my Grandma's yesterday and he was playing with his cousin (almost 5). They both disappeared and we finally saw them hiding under the table. It was so cute. They have lots of fun together. Later he had fun with Grandpa outside trying to throw leaves! LisaB: Good news about your sinus surgery. Getting ready for baby #2 is coming closer. Have fun. Rita: Great idea--doing an album for your mom's Christmas present. SarahW: Welcome and congrats on being pg w/ #2. Moriah: Great birthday cake pictures of Alex. Looks like he was having lots of fun with the cake. It is so cute when they fall asleep in their highchair! Beth: I always have the same fear when I can not get the TT board up and running. I am about 2 hours South of Baldwin and about 3 hrs North of Indiana. Joy: Great news. I am glad the surgery went so well for Josh. Way to go Josh! Sarah: Yeah for Hannah's 5 steps. Sorry you missed them. Kelli: Great Dr visit. Elizabeth & Colton weigh the same! Try not to worry about your MIL's visit--it's not worth getting so stressed out for. I know, easy for me to say. Good luck. SarahW. Wow, 3 turkey dinners-yummy. How did it go at the non-babyproofed houses. Any words of advise? Beth: I still feed Colton cereal w/ fruit baby food mixed in since he is such a picky eater and I worry he is not getting enough nutrition. Helen: Did you enjoy your quiet time? It is usally a toss up between napping and housework for me. I am having a hard time switching to the sippy cup. Colton really wants his bottle and won't drink much from the sippy cup. Lately he has been drinking 4-5 8oz bottles a day! I have really got to work on this. Stacey: Congrats on the birth of Alexa. Only 3 pushes--wow! I hope Franchesca adjusts quickly. Leanne: Good to hear from you. Yeah for Cynthia being p/t now. Have a great dr appointment tomorrow. Julianne & Colton 15 months today! email: jjones@batts.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 08:28:09 (MDT)) Hi Everyone, it's Judy!! It's been a week since I've posted. I've been busy keeping up with the PT board, my hectic schedule, a 17-month old, my DH, etc. I've missed you all. I apologize if some of my personals are a bit dated. KinderCare is having a Halloween Parade. I'm so excited. I've asked my Mom to have Elijah's pumpkin costume finished in time. I'll be on maternity leave then and possibly have a new "little pumpkin" to bring with me. Shelly and Riley - You were right to keep Tay from that crazy woman. I wish I had the time to be able to sew for E and this new baby. Julianne and Colton - Elijah does something similar in the tub. He places his toy ring (about 6" diameter) on the water. He sits and bends over to put his mouth in the water at the center of the ring. He comes up sputtering. Elijah also has a double ear infection. The pediatrician said he's actually had a continuous ear infection for the last 3 months. He just doesn't seem to be bothered by it until it gets really bad. He's on a strong antibiotic that has a nasty, bitter aftertaste. He's so good about taking his medicine. We wash it down with a bottle and that seems to help. Kelli and Elizabeth - I started letting Elijah use his own spoon when he was about Elizabeth's age. He was clumsy at first and would set it down to use his fingers. He would make a huge mess with yogurt and applesauce, so I'd wheel him out to the kitchen and let him make a mess. He's almost 18 months now and does pretty well feeding himself. He does a little better with those curved spoons, but I only have one and it seems like its always in the dishwasher!! Stacey, Franchesca, and Alexa - You've given me encouragement. I'm due in 2 weeks with baby #2. You must be so tired taking care of 2 young children and DH working so much. Franchesca will grow out of being mad at you. I guess it'll take a little time. I wonder how Elijah will be when I have this baby. I'm hoping for the best!! I suppose I should get back to work since that's why I'm here. This is my last week before maternity leave and I can't concentrate on work stuff. Judy and Elijah (17 months) email: jhintz@manu.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 13:33:22 (MDT)) Hello from Rita We had a good weekend. Amy is now fully mobile and is race-crawling through the house these days. we have to be more diligent and close some doors since she can get down the hallway in no time flat. Leanne - Congrats on getting Cynthia trained. Maddy is still wavering. She continues to do well in daycare but not at home. We had her in a pull-up to go out to a store the other night and boy did I have the WORST poopy mess to clean up when we got home. Diapers were easier to remove! Boy am I jealous of all you with 3 day weekends! I used to work in the court system and I miss having Columbus Day off every year. Well, gotta go since I am sitting in a cubicle and not in my usual office. Take care everyone! Rita & Maddy email: ritad@home.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 15:47:29 (MDT)) Hello from Shelly and Riley! I'm finally back in the land of the living. My bones ached so deep down inside that I thought I needed to die. We missed Disney Land, but the boys took it so good. I promised a halloween party. When I was little, older kids in the neighborhood would set their garages up as haunted houses. I was telling Taylor how fun this used to be. His b-day is the 26th, so we've decided to do a party the night before Halloween. He and his friends will host a haunted garage for the younger kiddos. So we are collecting ideas. Anyone???? Pinata, witchie-poo-punch, and we are all dressing up like the Adams Family. That's our theme. **Rita-You would not be amazed if you saw my house. It is in constant disarray. But I do have one philosophy in life. Play with and enjoy my kids now, clean when I'm old and alone!!!! I had a friend whose house had to be spotless. She vaccumned 3xs a day. The one thing she told me was that she wished she had spent more time just letting her kids have fun and being with them. **Mo- Thanks for the pics of Alex. They are so cute. I'm going to Medford on Wed., I'll look for a special something for Alex there. I bought cute overalls at Wal-mart for Riley but they are too long and skinny. (he is short and round) But their jeans fit him perfect! Little round waist and very short legs. We are going to the pumpkin patch on Sat. with Auntie. Riley calls her nannie, which fits, because she always had to have those goats!LOL In a way it worked for me not getting to come down there, I never would have got to come see Alex because of germs. To everyone else have a good Monday. Congrats to Stacey on her new baby girl. How do you guys do it???? I guess we just don't know how to have girls! SHELLY & RILEY email: shellyvance@hotmail.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 16:43:39 (MDT)) Hi HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO FELLOW CANADIANS!! We had our thanksgiving dinner today yummy turkey. Can hardly wait for the turkey sandwiches tomorrow. No personals guys I am way too tired tonight. take care all Diane and Angel -15 months Diane Morgan email: jadimorgan@home.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 18:26:21 (MDT)) Crystal and Darrel here. We are now in our apartment and online. We get 2 hours free a month, so I have to connect, go to any site I want, disconnect, and then read. When I want to go to another site, I have to reconnect and start the process all over again. It's a hassle, but at least it's something for now, until we can afford to subscribe to online services. Things are working out well between me and Doug right now. He's been a total jerk at times already, but things are definitely better than they have been in the past. I'll give him that much credit. We're not quite unpacked, but we never really completely unpack because we have moved several times alread in the past year and a half. I'm happy. Darrel has adjusted quite well to the new apartment and to his daddy being here now. Dh has been real helpful with Darrel and I no longer feel like he's in my "territory" by helping with our son. Well, that's it for now. I'll talk again tomorrow. Crystal and Darrel 13 1/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Monday, October 11, 1999 at 20:41:01 (MDT)) Colton was so much fun yesterday. I was sweeping the garage and driveway because the leaves were everywhere. Colton saw me and tried to copy me by pushing his musical "popper" toy over the leaves. He had fun walking through the small piles I was making. When I finally got the leaves into one pile he had a riot. He would run through them, fall, lay on his back & just grin. Would you believe I actually wished there had been more leaves to rake? We had fun family time playing outside when DH came home from work. Even Tequila, our dog got involved in the wrestling and running around. Colton tried taking a stick from her that she was chewing on. Tequila backed up and swung him around 2-3 feet. My little boy would not let go though. DH & me were laughing so hard that Colton stopped and looked at us with a "what is wrong with you two" look on his face. He learned two more words yesterday with my mom watching him. I heard him say "uh - oh" but not tractor. What a great day! Sarah: Colton went through a stage of jumping OFF the couch. Talk about getting my heart racing! We moved the coffee table to storage as soon as he was able to pull up. Louise: James talking to his teddybear--how cute. This weekend Colton emptied his basket of stuffed animals and found two old favorites. He dragged them around with him all weekend. Judy: A Halloween parade at Kindercare sounds like fun. I hope Elijah's ears get better soon. Good luck with the birth of baby #2. Shelly: The haunted house party sounds like lots of fun. I just received the October issue of Crayola Kids and it had a large section on haunted house ideas. (Can't remember any at the moment though.) Sorry to hear you got sick and missed Disney Land. Crystal: It was good to see that you have moved into the apartment and are adjusting well to having your DH be more involved with Darrel. Hope things continue to go well for you. Have a great day mommies and kids. Julianne & Colton 15 mo email: jjones@batts.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 06:42:16 (MDT)) Hi, this is Birdie. Just a quick hello. Noah is an official walker now. He started last Monday and then walked again on Friday. By this weekend he was walking all over. I am so psyched because we got it on video. i have had the camera charging in the living room just waiting for the perfect shot. We were pretty excited. Went hiking yesterday. noah just loves riding in the back pack and the leaves were at their peak. It was sooo pretty. This weekend DH and are going away for a romantic weekend. I am looking forward to it but also know that I am going to miss Noah terribly. We have been on 2 overnights since he was born but not all at once. I miss him if we just go to the movies. Anyway, take care. I'll check in with you all soon. It won't be long until I can officially be a part of this site. i can't believe how quickly the time has gone. Birdie and Noah (10+months) Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 08:26:46 (MDT)) Good morning ladies!!! SARAH here. Not too much to report so...... LOUISE - HI! Good to hear from you! JULIANNE - How is COLTON feeling today? Your story about the leaves was so cute!!! :) We've been thinking about moving the coffee table, too. I guess we probably should!!! JUDY - How are you feeling??? How's E feeling?? RITA - YUCK!! Poopy mess! I can't wait (can you hear the sarcasm?) :) SHELLY - Glad you're feeling better! Sorry you missed your trip, though. Your party sounds like fun!! DIANE - YUM, turkey!! Only a little over a month for me! :) CRYSTAL - HI! Glad you guys are moved in and doing well! BIRDIE - OH MY GOSH!!!! I can't believe he's walking!!! That's awesome! :) Have fun this weekend!! :) OK, that's it for now! Talk to you ladies soon. :) Sarah and Hannah (13 months) email: smoore@geatoir.cfer.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 09:42:39 (MDT)) Hi from LisaB. We enjoyed our 3 day weekend. I got everything on my "to do" list done and then some - WOW! We went to an area springs and saw the trout hatcheries, old iron working buildings and equipment, etc. They also had several exhibits. One was weaving and they had 2 goats and 2 sheep next to it. Max was playing with one of the goats ... and I found out later DH "didn't think" to take a picture - UGH! We hoped to meet up with a Mommy and her family from Babies Today but there were so many people we didn't run into each other :-( My nephew is doing great. He's already thrown away his walker and is hobbling around on his good leg. He went back to school yesterday - he's just a little slow and if he has to poop the Kindergarten teacher has to go to the bathroom with him and hold his bad leg up (I thought of you, Patty, when my SIL told me this!!!). Max has, the last few weeks, went from loving baths to hating them. He cries the entire time. Last night DH didn't even wash his hair as Max had snot dripping from both nostril from crying so hard. He fell in the water twice (he tries to stand on the edge) and went under but that was over a month ago. He's not afraid of the drain as he loves to lift the drain up and down to let the water out (the only time he's not screaming in the tub!). He also has lots of bath toys - we've tried rotating toys, no toys, a lot of toys, a few toys, etc. We're about at our wits end. Any suggestions????? Tonya e-mailed me. She's really busy with 2 jobs and the third trimester of her pregnancy (plus having 2 little ones at home). She's doing well. HELEN: I was lucky - Max voluntarily gave up his bottle around 11 months. He only got them at the sitters and also took a cup for a snack - and one day refused the bottle and only wanted the cup. STACEY: Congrats on Alexa and esp. the fast delivery. I'm glad Franchesca is adjusting so well. I bet it's hard with DH gone so much (as both DD are so dependent on you) but the extra $ is probably VERY nice! PATTY: So, if Jarin is up until 11 or after I guess you're really dragging for work in the morning :-( LEANNE: Congrats on the potty training. KELLI: Max generally only throws fits if I block his goals - won't let him run loose in a store, make him lay still to get his diaper changed, etc. I tell him "no", "the rule is you play with your toys and lay still", etc. one time. After that I go about my business and ignore the fit to show him they aren't an effective way of getting what he wants. If he gets HYSTERICAL thou or does something to hurt himself (like stand on the couch kicking and throwing his arms around), I do pay attention to him and try to comfort him. SARAH: Max crawled up on the couch once by himself and hasn't done it since (stands there whining for someone to lift him up there). Once on the couch he wants to stand and walk. The coffee table was banished to the basement when Max started crawling good - and I LOVE the extra room upstairs (plus one less thing I can pile stuff on!) so it'll stay there forever. JULIANNE: Poor Colton; I hope his ears are better soon. Max still eats baby cereal mixed with fruit on most mornings. RITA: Congrats (?) on Amy becoming a speed crawler. Now you'll have 2 pistols on your hands - LOL! SHELLY: The halloween party sounds great. CRYSTAL: YEAH on the apartment and Internet access. BIRDIE: Walking at 10 months? WOW!!! LisaB & Max (13 1/2 months) email: lisa_lab@hotmail.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 11:22:20 (MDT)) Good Morning. Lucky me! Riley is taking a early nap. No fair, all you Canadians!!!!! You get turkey and all the trimmings already?!!! I better not hear anybody talking about how yummy the pumpkin pie was!!! I LOVE PUMPKIN PIE. When I was preggers with Taylor, I had gained way too much weight. The dr. said no more eating, but the last month I was craving pumpkin pie really bad. I finally said to hell with the dr. and went to our favorite bakery for a pie. (now Tay loves it too). I ate mexican food until I could've popped with Jess, and now he wants enchiladas at least once a week. I had a tuna sandwich every day I was preggers with Riley, now he goes nuts over tuna. Weird! **Julianne-Where do you get Crayola Kids? I've never heard of it. **Rita-when my boys wore pull-ups and had a accident, I tore the sides. That way it came off more like a diaper and didn't smear "stuff" down their legs. Potty training is the hardest thing I think to teach your child. Tay had encopresis which made things extremly difficult. He just got over it in the last 2 years. Now Jess is following in his footsteps. I hope Riley doesn't do it too. **Mo-let me know what size to buy Alex before tomorrow. Just in case I decide to buy clothes. Talk at you all later! SHELLY & RILEY 18months email: shellyvance@hotmail.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 11:22:50 (MDT)) You guys: Sorry i didnt mean to come off as an old meanie the other day. It isnt too late to send a card out , yuguys! Thanks, LISAB! you must be a wonderful thotful person. She cried today when she read your card, and believe me you were VERY tactful!!! lol I will keep you posted. Keep those cards comin girls! Which one is Patti? Beth, and Rita?She mentioned you today too. Was gonna meet you or someting? BARBIE Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 12:06:36 (MDT)) Oh the pumpkin pie was great especially with the whipcream, yum yum!! Put pigtails in Angel's hair for the first time she looks so cute, oh course I am a bit bias but others tell me too =). Julianne:where can you get Crayola Kids sounds like a good magazine. Julianne&Sarah : we moved our coffee table away from the couch for that very reason I dont want an accident to happen which could have been easily preventable. She has fallen a couple of times off the couch and she just gets up like nothing and gets back on the couch. Lisa B: Maybe you could get in to a bath with Max or try showering together. Just an idea. Just wait Lisa B. I remember when not too long ago Angel would do just what Max was doing. Now you cant stop her she tries to climb up on everything and most times she is successful. She loves getting up on the couch and finding a corner and leaning back and streching out like dad. Shelley: what is encopresis? Well that is all today feels like a Monday because of yesterdays holiday. I cant believe how addicted I am to this board I just found it a week ago and cant wait to get on it every naptime and then again at night. I get so excited when I see a personal to me my hubbie is probably sick of me saying oh look!! =) thanks for making me feel so welcome you guys are the best. Diane and Angel -15 months Diane Morgan email: jadimorgan@home.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 12:22:33 (MDT)) Good Evening Mommies, it's Judy!! Elijah got bit again at daycare yesterday. I didn't find out until I picked him up. I know who the biter is now. They're not supposed to tell me, but I figured it out anyway. When I picked him up tonight, I talked with the Center Director about keeping a close watch on the two of them. I hope E doesn't pick up the biting habit himself but he may be thinking about it because he was gnawing on my shoulder this evening while I was holding him. It wasn't an actual bite. Someone on the PT board had a suggestion for E's constant ear infections and I wondered if any of you mommies had heard of Acidophilus and vitamin C. She's going to tell me about how to use it. I'd never even heard of it. What do you all know about it? Just one personal: Sarah and Hannah - I'm feeling ok for being so large. Thanks for asking. This little guy is putting an awful lot of pressure down low and making it difficult for me to walk. Elijah seems to be feeling better, even though that antibiotic is nasty. Judy and Elijah (17 months) email: jhintz@manu.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 20:12:19 (MDT)) Crystal and Darrel here. we're doing pretty good. Darrel will now stand himself up without holding onto anything. But he'll only do it occasionally. Still no more steps since last week. He's one stubborn little guy. Just as stubborn as his daddy. It gets annoying at times. Well, DH started his new job today. He came home and went straight to bed. :( Dh and I got into a fight this weekend because of how my parenting style. He says that I baby Darrel too much and shouldn't pick him up when he's having a tantrum. The other day we were outside, and dh told Darrel no. He started crying and throwing a tantrum. I was ready to go in, and Darrel needed to have his nose wiped. And Doug had a fit about it. Wait a minute. If Darrel needs his nose wiped or I'm ready to go somewhere, I'm going to pick him up, tantrum or no tantrum. And besides, what right does he have in telling me that I can't pick up Darrel. Granted, he is Darrel's father and my husband, but he doesn't know Darrel as well as I do and he hasn't been around very often. I've basically been a single mom for 13 months. But Doug says that I'm spoiling Darrel and that when he's older, he'll be walking all over me. Just because I picked Darrel up during a tantrum to wipe his nose and bring him in the house. At least Darrel will grow up knowing that his mommy loves him and is there for him when he's upset. As it is, Darrel knows that when I say no, i mean no. I only have to tell him "no" once and he'll stop doing something. Sure, he may go back a few minutes later and try to do it, but at his age, he still has a short memory and is very curious. I still don't have outlet protectors, but Darrel doesn't try to mess with them very often. But, when he does, I tell him "no", even if there are plugs in them. That way he knows they are off limits. And he listens. I'll admit that I'm strict with Darrel, but I'm not so strict that he's not allowed to do anything. I just want him to know right from wrong, and I believe that right and wrong has to be taught basically from birth. Darrel still has plenty of chances to explore and play in areas that are not "no:s". They are areas that are basically safe and in which he seldom, if ever, hears the word "no". And teaching him at such an early age has paid off. He will not pull hair. He quit doing that by the time he was 8 months old. However, if I'm holding him and he wants down, he pulls hair because he knows that if he pulls hair, then he gets put down. So, I don't put him down when he pulls hair to get down. If I intend to put him down, I put him down when he asks to be. That way he won't pull hair. If I don't intend to put him down, I don't put him down no matter what he does. Sorry for the soapbox. Didn't intend for that, just intended to vent out my frustration about DH saying that I'm spoiling Darrel and that he's going to walk all over me once he gets older. I did feel bad though, because the other night I did have to spank Darrel. I was changing his diaper, and he kept scooting away from me. I'd pull him back tords me and tell him "no", but he wouldn't listen. So, I tapped him on his bare bottom and told him no. He listened then. He threw a tantrum over it, though, because mommy never spanks. I hurt his feelings more than anything, but it got him to listen. After I changed his diaper, we played and cuddled for a while, though. I didn't even spank him hard enough to leave a red mark on his bottom. It was just basically a tap to let him know that I was serious. I just feel bad because I had to do it. I just hope that he won't have to be spanked very often. I had a stressful day at work today. I was in the two year old room today because we've had two teachers quit the past two weeks. Well, today, they were very cranky. I don't know why they were. They just wouldn't stop crying, hitting, biting, and throwing toys at each other. I just didn't know what to do. So, I asked to be transferred to a different room for the rest of the day because I was so frustrated. With Darrel, it's easy. I can just pass him to dadduy or put him to bed. With the two year olds at the day care, it's ot so easy. I was lucky that there was a teacher who was willing to trade classes. I took the four year olds for the rest of the day. According to their teacher, they weren't much better. But the change was a great relief. They could tak and tell me what was wrong, and they are easier to discipline. But I still love my job. That hasn't changed. I'm glad that I asked for the rlief, though, because I was frustrated enough to hurt the kids in my care. That's the last thing I want to do. We're not allowed to spank at the day care, and there were a few kids I was ready to spank. So, it's a good thing that I asked for help. Well, that's all for right now. Sorry no personals. Crystal and Darrel 13 !/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 20:27:20 (MDT)) Hi mommies! I hate it when I can't get on here every day!!! Jarin is in bed and has been for an hour. What do I do? Go to sleep like I should? No! Spend time reading this board, of course. I am now fighting a sore throat and have lots of lovely sinus drainage. Last week, Jarin got the all clear and healthy sign from the doctor and now here I go. UGH! My little sweetie is such a terror! He is so into everything. Stands in his high chair, climbs on the kitchen table, pulls everything out of cupboards, etc. etc. He is so funny though. I just love this stage. **Helen: Good luck getting Amanda off the bottle. My DD was on it forever. I think I finally got rid of it when she was 2 1/2. I told her the Easter bunny took it and left her candy instead. Amazingly enough, she never complained about it! **Leanne: Congrats on getting Cynthia potty trained. Sorry to hear you have heartburn already. Did you have it with your others? I only had it when I was prego with my sons. **Tracey: Dillon sounds adorable with all his talking. I'm sure he is growing way too fast for you. =( **Sarah: Climbing? Jarin is the king. Our coffee table also has been banished to storage for now. And like LisaB, I love the extra room! More for Jarin to throw things in. heehee **Kelli: Jarin has also started to throw tantrums. Yesterday, I even put him in his crib for a while and I NEVER do that!!! **Louise: Hey, I'm coming to London next year! Maybe we can meet then. LOL **Julianne: Sorry to hear about colton's double ear infection. No fun, for you or him. =( I also hate leaving Jarin at daycare when he is crying. Happy belated 15 month birthday to Colton. I couldn't connected yesterday, so I couldn't post. Colton sounds so cute with his popper and the leaves. Jarin pushes his popper toy around when I vacuum and he thinks he's vacuuming too. Now he loves it as soon as I get the sweeper out, he's all smiles and runs for his popper! **Birdie: Congrats on Noah walking! Enjoy your romantic weekend. My DH would love that. I've only been away from jarin to go to work. DH feels pretty left out, I think. **LisaB: Who were you going to meet from BT? Glad you think of me when you think of people going to the bathroom - LOL LOL LOL!! As a matter of fact, my aide was gone on a field trip with her son today, so I had to be in charge of my little guy with the form of MD. I had to take him to the bathroom twice. No small task, let me tell you. I have to get him out of the chair in the classroom, into the wheelchair, out of the wheelchair, onto a cot to take off his pants, onto the toilet, back to the cot, back to the wheelchair. And because he can't move his lower half, putting on and taking off pants is very hard. Much harder than changing diapers. Considering he weighs about 50 lbs and I weigh 100 lbs, it also was pretty hard on my back. Good thing he's such a sweetie. Don't know what to tell you about Max in the tub. I liked the idea of getting in with him - worth a shot, huh? Glad to hear Tonya is ok. I always laugh when you say someone emailed you. You are just like the mother to us all, aren't you? Jarin usually only goes to bed that late on weekends and between 9:30 and 10 on weeknights. But yes, I am usually dragging in the morning - until I get that Mountain Dew anyway! I know, bad for nursing, but I have to do something! (excuses, excuses, huh?) LOL **Diane: I bet Angel was adorable in her pigtails. I remember putting them in Jaime's hair when she was little. Seems like forever ago since she's 16 now! Your DH will get used to your addiction. Mine already has started to get to know which girls have which kids. heehee! **Judy: Hope Elijah's ears are better and that kid at daycare quits biting him!!! **Crystal: Glad you got moved in. Hope you and DH get your problems resolved. **Ok, have to get my weary, sick body to bed. Take care everyone. Patty and Jarin - 13 1/2 months email: tematheny@ctlnet.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 21:40:01 (MDT)) Hello all, Kahne here, sorryu it has been so long, but it is midterm week. I have my psychology mid tomorrow. It is mostly on punishment, ha. My professor was saying how punishment causes permanent psychological damage. I laughed at her, and she wanted to know why. I told her once her baby is born (she is preggo for #1) she will change her lecture. ALL of the moms in the class agreed. LOL. I hope this message finds all of you well! I dont have much time, study study study! I just wanted to pop in and say hello! Miss all of you! I will give you a better update soon I hope! Kahne and Cat 9 months email: skcx2@fnbop.com Tuesday, October 12, 1999 at 22:55:52 (MDT)) Crystal and Darrel here. DH just left for work. I have three hours left before I have to head off. This morning when I woke up (five minutes after DH did), he was apologizing profusely about not staying awake so we could talk after I got home from work. I told him that he has a new schedule that he's not quite used to yet, so it's understandable for him to be so tired. He was relieved to know that I understood and wasn't mad. Patty: My DH is also beginning to learn who's who already. Occasionally, he has a reply that who wants me to include in my posts. At least he doesn't get mad at me for having my friends over the net. In fact, the other day, he asked about dadstalk. I cracked up because we posted about it on BT a while back. What a coincidence. I have now gotten worse in my addiction. This page is my home page. Beats all that extra typing. And seeing as how this is the site I visit most, I think it makes perfect sense. Well, that's it for now. I'll talk some more later before work. Crystal and Darrel 13 1/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 06:10:59 (MDT)) Colton found his tongue yesterday. My mom said that he brought her his stuffed dog (looks like wishbone)and was sticking his tongue out at her. The dog's mouth is open and the tongue sticks out. It is so cute to know that his little mind is working and making such connections. As soon as I came home mom had him show me. He was so proud of himself. Tooth number 5 finally poked through and number 6 should any time too. Both are top teeth. DH spent less than a half hour with Colton last night because he had to run some errands and Colton was really clingy to him this morning. He wanted daddy and daddy only! At least I was able to get ready faster. Birdie: Yeah for Noah walking. Have a great weekend away. Sarah: Colton is feeling much better. He pokes at his ear once in a while, but that's about it. He is a very active and happy boy even when he is sick. Only if he has a fever does he slow down. LisaB: What a fun long weekend you had. Wow, what a woman getting your whole to-do list accomplished. Glad to hear your nephew is feeling better. Did you try changing the time you give him a bath? Is it the start of his bedtime routine? Just when you think you have one thing mastered our kids throw us a curve ball don't they? Good luck figuring out what will make him happy in the bath again. Shelly & Diane: I ordered the Crayola Kids magazine through my credit card--discounted rate. They have a web site: www.crayolakids.com. It is geared towards kids 5 and older but Colton likes looking through magazines so I thought this would be fun for him. Plus it gives me some good ideas for the future. Judy: I sure hope that Elijah will be able to enjoy daycare without getting bit again. That was good that you talked to the people in charge. Crystal: For some reason husbands think they know more than mom does. My DH will be gone all day and then come home and criticize me for my mothering skills about something I have had to deal with all day. All I can say is get used to it, it's a common male reaction! Hope the kids are better behaved for you today. Patty: I hope your sore throat goes away soon. I have been fighting one for almost 2 wks now. Not fun. We have not been able to take any golf lessons yet because with the weather cooler I don't want to be out in it and really get sick. Kahne: Good luck on your midterm! Hello to all the other mommies and kids. Julianne & Colton 15 mo email: jjones@batts.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 07:07:58 (MDT)) Good morning ladies!! Halfway to Friday!!! :) Yes, it's SARAH! LOL Man, HANNAH was in such a GREAT mood last night!!! I just love her so much! And I miss her so much when I'm at work, when she's napping, whenever we're apart from each other. It's like a part of me is missing without her!!! I NEVER imagined I could be so much in love with someone!!! It always gets to me, cause HANNAH was definitely NOT planned and when I found out I was preggo, I was VERY, VERY upset. In fact (I hate to admit this!) but there were times I wish I would miscarry. :( :( I thank God every day for her! I can't imagine my life without her!!! OK, just had to get that out! LOL LISA - Can't really help you out on the bath thing. HANNAH loves her baths. In fact, she gets real mad when we take her out of the tub! DIANE - I bet ANGEL looked adorable in her pigtails! How old is she?? HANNAH's hair isn't long enough to put in pigtails yet. I try and put barrettes and such in her hair, but she HATES them and ends up pulling them out. JUDY - Sorry to hear E was bit again yesterday!! I've never heard of the Acidophilus and Vitamin C. Let me know what you find out. I'd be interested cause HANNAH gets ear infections alot. CRYSTAL - Glad you and DH made up! PATTY - Hope you feel better soon! KAHNE - Good luck with mid-terms! JULIANNE - HI!! You usually post right after, or right before me. So I know you'll be on here soon! :) OK, that's all for now. Talk to you ladies soon! Sarah and Hannah (13 months) email: smoore@geatoir.cfer.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 07:09:27 (MDT)) Hi from LisaB. A co-worker had his 4 week old DD in yesterday. I held her and she was so tiny compared to my big guy. I commented that it makes me want to have another one and my boss so I can't as I'm too important to be off for 6 weeks. Little do they know it'll be more like 6 years as I'll do the SAHM bit - LOL!!!! BARBIE: I'm glad Mimii' liked the card. She's such a sweetie :-) DIANE: I used to take baths with Max when he "graduated" to the big tub. I tried that last night and he still fussed some but not as much. He spent 1/2 the time just sitting on my lap kicking his feet. Maybe after a few more nights of this he'll be content to bathe by himself again. Thanks for the advice!!! CRYSTAL: I know it's hard having Doug come in after a year and tell you what to do with Darrel. You really need to get past the resentment, thou. Yes, you've basically been a single Mom and you've done a bang-up job of it. Doug is there now thou and he's Darrel's father and he should have as much say in Darrel's upbringing as you. Sometimes you'll be right and sometimes Doug will be right; just remember you BOTH love Darrel and are just trying to do what's best for him. PATTY: I hope to meet Chris from BT. She's new, with a 3 year old DD and a 4 week old DS and lives about a hour from me. There is also a Tonya from St. Louis that I might meet sometime. BTW, I'm also a Mountain Dew addict!! JULIANNE: We play, do the bath, read, and then nurse - same routine we've used for months. LisaB & Max (13 1/2 months) email: lisa_lab@hotmail.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 07:49:29 (MDT)) Two quick things: JULIANNE - I told ya!! LOL :) I also forgot to tell you guys that HANNAH has started blowing kisses. My mom worked on it with her for about 5 minutes the other day, and now she does it all of the time. Too cute!! OK, that's it! BYE! Sarah again Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 07:58:54 (MDT)) Crystal here taking a mommy timeout. Darrel woke up extremmely cranky this morning. I think it's his teeth bothering him. He wouldn't eat yesterday. Would only eat fruit, and I had to force him to take a bite of it before he'd even eat it. He won't take his cup or eat right now. Everytime he chews on his thumb or a finger, he screams like he's in pain. He's had two molars come through part way, so he may either be getting them in the rest of the way or getting a new molar through. Poor child. He won't even let me look in his mouth, so it has got to be his teeth. When he's teething hard, he won't allow me to look. Julieanne: I know what you mean. Darrel was unplanned, too, and I was unhappy when I found out that I was pregnant with him. It was mostly because I wasn't married and was afraid of what people would think. But I love Darrel very much and wouldn't change a thing. A little sister or brother is being planned for Darrel, though. It doesn't matter to me and DH that Darrel was unplanned because we still love him very much. Even though he attends the day care I work at, I still miss him while I'm working and not in his class room. Sometimes, I want to go in to see how he's doing, but if I do that, he gets mad when I leave. But when I'm with the two year olds, Darrel comes in with me for a while when he starts to get very fussy. The new toys do miracles for him. It's just so hard to believe that Darrel is almost 14 months. He's growing up way too fast. When Darrel is about 16 or 18 months, we're going to start potty training him. We're getting him a potty for Christmas. Some of my friends have already started their potty training. One child just turned one.She has a potty and loves to use it as a chair. So, her mommy takes advantage of it and sets her on it without her diaper. She'll go in her potty no problem. In fact, when she has a hard time with BM's, her mom puts her on it, and it's easier for her. Another friend has a little girl who's almost one and takes her diaper off whenever it's wet or dirty. If it's clean or dry, she'll leave it on. Otherwise, it comes straight off. For Christmas, we're also getting Darrel a toddler bed, even if he's not quite ready for it. We'll set it up in his room so he can get used to it being there and let him play on it with adult supervision. I have a friend who's 12 month old is in a toddler bed now. She hates her crib because she can't get out of it. She knows how to get off couches and beds safely and doesn't toss and turn much. She loves her new big girl bed. Now, I'm not getting Darrel a potty and bed because my friends are having success in these two areas. I had been planning on getting these things long before our babies turned one. I started making these plans in April or May when I started planning Darrel's party. Well, I hear silence in the house, so I'm going to check on Darrel. I'll tak some more later. Crystal and Darrel 13 1/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 08:07:08 (MDT)) Hello from Helen&Amanda!! We had a busy weekend w/hockey and all. Amanda is on day 5 without a bottle, only one a couple nights ago when she woke up!!! I guess its not her that wants it,its me wanting to rock her and feed her, time to let her grow up!----- Thanks for all the imput on bottles! Needed a little coaching! LEANNE- Congrats on the potty training- now you know where all the bathrooms are at every store you enter don't you??!!! I had heartburn w/ all my babies, and it got worse towards the end.How did you show Veronica to go down the stairs?? Do tell!!!! Hope your doctor app went well!! DIANE- Amanda is the last of my worries when it comes to X-mas. Its the older kids--DH included. I do think I will get her a cassette player for all the tapes we have of kiddie songs- they love those!! STACEY-- Congrats on the fast delivery and new baby!!!! BIRDIE- Congrats on Noah walking!!! PATTY- Hope your feeling better!!! KAHNE-- Good luck on the mid-terms!! How do you find time to study??????? CRYSTAL- Glad to hear the move went well!! We have a little tykes slide in the fam. rm and yesterday Amanda decided to climb to the top, think for a moment and stand!!! UH -- thats a long fall, no fear yet! LISAB-- Amanda hardly ever has a bath by herself- I usually bring her in the shower w/me, she sits and plays w/toys- I lather amd rinse her and we're both done. I did this w/my other kids also-quicker. Well better go-- its bath time for us !! LATER!!! Helen&Amanda@14mos(#3) Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 08:24:31 (MDT)) A quick hello from Helen&Amanda!! BIRDIE/CHARLINE--- Sorry, I've misplaced your e-mail add. and couldn't respond. Charline e-mailed me and the mall sounds fine--I am in Lancaster-probably close to an hour from the mall. The date sounds fine so far, I'll have to find something to do with the kids so Amanda and I can get away-- Keep in touch!! CRYSTAL-- Hope you and DH are seeing things eye-to-eye on child rearing. DH probably sees Darrel as being a 'momma's boy' when he runs to you but he is still a baby and thats what they do, sometimes men don't see that. I wouldn't rush things with the potty training and bed- sometimes they get worse about it, the norm on both seems to be anywhere from 2-3yrs old. You don't need to be supermom- he'll eventually succeed at both in time-- it is good to get him used to seeing both around- some kids get really scared with a potty and also w/leaving their crib, this should ease him into it. :O) Back to washing and vacuuming the floors b/f Amanda is awake---LATER!!!! Helen&Amanda Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 11:32:15 (MDT)) Hey everyone! Sorry I've been so terrible about keeping up lately. Very busy here at work and I haven't found time to sneak a post in until now. Work seems to come in spurts around here. It's either totally busy and totally dead. I got Allison's Halloween costume. She's going to be a chicken. I know you all are thinking a chicken??!!! WHY?? Well, since she's been born, we've always called her "baby chicken" (I don't know why so don't ask, it just kinda happened.) Anyway, I figure it was the perfect costume for her and right now is the perfect time while she is still too young to protest!! LOL. The only size they had was 2T so I will have to take it up, as she still only wears 18M, but I'll make it work! It's actually really cute and I was surprised that they made a chicken costume, but they did! Anyway, what's everyone else doing for Halloween? Stacey - congrats on the birth of Alexa. Glad you had a fast easy labor. Rita - Wow, a mobile Amy. Watch out world! Moriah - haven't heard from you in a while. How's Alex doing with the new trach? shelly - glad you are better. I got my flu shot today so hopefully I won't get it this year. Patty -sorry to hear you are feeling yucky, but glad Jarin is better. Hope you are better soon. I know it's no fun teaching and feeling like crap! Sarah M.- don't you just love those good moods?? Allison has been in one for about a month now. It's so great when they're happy! Lisa B - the new baby sounds adorable. All these new babies and everyone talking about their next has got me wanting one now too, but we can't afford daycare for 2 and I can't afford not to work (unfortunately :-( ) so it will be a while before we get to have another one. Julianne - Colton sounds too cute sticking his tongue out! Kahne - good luck on your midterms! I'm glad I'm done with school I wouldn't want to be in your shoes! Judy - sorry E's getting bit at daycare. I'm glad you understand that they cant tell you whos doing it though. I used to run a daycare and had a kid that kept getting bit by another and had the dad threaten to beat up the other kids dad if he found out who it was that was biting his kid! Some people just take things too far. It was incidences like those though that made confidentiality necessary. Birdie - congrats on Noah walking. I think that makes him an official toddler even if he hasn't reached the official age so come on over and join us. Talk to you ladies later! have a great day Beth and Allison (almost 17 months) email: bobwite@Msn.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 11:53:54 (MDT)) Hello from Rita We are doing okay aside from the inevitable potty-training accidents. I have gotten pretty good with the carpet steamer. Why do they always happen when DH is out? Hmmm.... Lisa B - We have gone through several cycles where Maddy likes/dislikes the bath. We just keep plugging. Now she will actually put her face in the water. Hair washing is still difficult. Patty - Sorry to hear that you are feeling sick. I am hoping that we can get through another winter realtively healthy. Last year was good for the girls although I had the nasty sinus infections. Birdie - Wow! Noah is already walking? I think that Amy wants to be on the same schedule. She stood up in her crib last night for the first time. I turned around to see her peeking over the rail and grinning at me. Sarah - Maddy still hates hair things. We can only get her hair into a pony tail. Headbands and clips are out. She's got such beautiful hair that I would like to braid, but she will not have any of it. She does not seem to be interested in things like that. Last night she told me that she wanted Micro Machines. Shelly - Sorry you missed your trip to Disneyland, but I am glad to hear that you are feeling better. My BIL also told us about pulling apart the pull-ups. I'll have to give it a try. Kahne - Good luck on the exams! Crystal - Believe me, give Darrell plenty of time before you institute potty training. He'll let you know when he is ready. Hi to everyone else! Gotta go. Take care everyone! Rita & Maddy email: ritad@home.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 12:14:53 (MDT)) Hi this is Birdie and Noah. Just a quick post. Noah has a little cold again. Just a runny nose actually. I am looking forward to this weekend away but I know I am going to miss him teribly. Both sets of grand parents visited the other day so they got to see him do his walking thing. It's kind of funny but he will only walk in our living room. Any other room in the house...forget it. Is that weird or what. I wonder if it's because the rug is softer maybe and he knows it won't hurt when he falls. Who knows. Having dinner tonight with noah's great grandpa. (probably some spoil the baby shopping also. Okay with me.) Take care. I'll check back soon. Birdie and Noah (10 months) email: LJU777@AOL.COM Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 12:27:27 (MDT)) Katy here LisaB- sory don't know what to tell you about baths. We don't have a tub, so Liam get to come into the shower with either me or DH to get clean. He thinks it's kind of fun. Patty- Jarin sounds like a holy terror, just like Liam!! He's forever getting into things he's not supposed to. And everyone else thinks he's an angel. Okay galls, here's a problem that maybe you can help with. Lately, Liam has been taking off his diapers. He does it mostly at home and during the evening. When he's at home he's ususally undressed because we live in an upstairs apartment and it's warm there. i don't put him jammies at bedtime cause I don't want him to overheat. So besides putting him in a onesie or in trousers, is there anything I can do? And he ususally does it when nooone is looking so I don't want to punsih him because I'm afraid he won't connect the punishment to the bad behavior. Katy and Liam email: princess__bride@hotmail.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 13:44:22 (MDT)) Hi again from LisaB. I have to work at my other office tomorrow and don't know if I have Internet access yet over there ... so I wanted to say "see ya Friday"! SARAH: Yeah on Hannah blowing kisses! CRYSTAL: I think around 3 is the typical age to potty train. I would say try at 18-24 months but if Darrel protests don't push it - let HIM set the schedule. I guess pushing too early can change major setbacks (as can delaying training when the child is ready as it's not a convenient time for you - a lesson my younger sister is learning the hard way with her 3 1/2 year old). Max is getting to where he pulls on his diaper at home once he pees (when we let him run around in just a diaper). I guess he realizes he's wet but I know he isn't old enough to know WHEN he has to pee so it'll be another year or so before I probably even consider potty training. HELEN: I have to shower in the morning to wake myself up and would never make it to work if I didn't shower until Max gets up. He already gets up around 5:45 so I hate to get him up any early (therefore he gets his bath at night). BETH: Max has a Little Devil sweatsuit - all read with a tail and pointy ears. I'm being lazy and just using it this year as he'll only dress up for the sitters and to "trick-or-treat" at the in-laws. RITA: Maddy's quite the tomboy, isn't she?! KATY: Have you tried putting really short and lightweight shorts on over the diaper - something cool that limits access to the diaper? One of the diaper covers for clothe diapers would probably work great but I doubt they would fit over a diposable. :-) See you all on Friday!!!!! LisaB & Max (13 1/2 months) email: lisa_lab@hotmail.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 14:26:09 (MDT)) Wow, its taken me all day to catch up on the posts! Thanksgiving weekend was wonderful, the weather was great. We went out pumpkin hunting at a farm near us - they had lots of neat stuff set up, a Western town, a petting zoo, nursery rhyme displays... Then we had to go hunt through the field for the perfect pumpkin! Thanksgiving dinners were great, thankfully my grandmother made ham, so we got a night off from turkey. We were even given turkey leftovers! Unfortunately my morning/all day sickness is still bad, and I ended up loosing an entire turkey dinner once we got home :-( I really hope this passes soon, it wasn't nearly this bad with Alex. A few personals: Patty: Alex is nursing about 5 times a day now - first thing in the morning before work, one bottle at daycare (I pump at work) for his afternoon nap, when I get home (5:30), before bed, and once in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, thats all the milk there is, last night he nursed around 9, then wanted more around 10, and went into a hysterical fit because there wasn't any milk! Have you had this, or is it just because I'm pregnant? If you're interested, there's a nursing board also here at Toddlers Today, go to interact, and there's a list of boards. It seems to be for mom's nursing older babies. Rita: Thanks for the spoon suggestions, we feed him with a long handled Platex spoon with a very small bowl, and I think he has a hard time manuvering it. I'll look for the ones you suggested. Alex will only eat table food now (except for his baby cereal in the morning) I just try to see that he gets a couple of different vegetables (carrots are his favorites) and some meat each night for dinner. He likes Kraft dinner or PB&J for lunch! I figure that the breastfeeding is backup to make sure he gets everything he needs. Julianne: Thanksgiving was great! Thanks for asking. Shelley: Did I mention the pumpkin pies? All three of them? Alex LOVES pumpkin pie, he would have eaten my whole piece if I'd let him! Beth: I bought a pattern for Alex's Halloween costume about a month ago - a really cute fuzzy bear. I've finished it, and guess what - Toddler size 1 does not mean a 1 yr old! It didn't give any height measurements, so I didn't really check before I started. Anyways, it will probably fit him next year (or in the next 5 years anyways!!!) and I've bought another (infant sized) pattern for a Lion, with a fuzzy mane and everything. I'll send pics when its done! Have a great day everyone, SarahW and Alex (12mo) email: swellman@knightpiesold.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 15:49:06 (MDT)) Hi mommies. Hope you all had a good Wednesday! Jarin is now having quite the runny nose. I guess my little bout with the cold is getting him too. My throat doesn't hurt as badly today, but my voice keeps getting deeper. Tonight, DH told me to stop talking. I think I was giving him the creeps with my deep manly voice. LOL. Jesse brought Jarin upstairs this evening and I was able to eat, read the paper, and get on here all without being bothered. What a sweetie my boy is. **Kahne: good luck on your midterms. I'll be sending some good testing vibes your way. **Crystal: I remember AD talking about dadstalk. She was so funny. I wouldn't rush the potty training thing. DD got it right about age 2 (about 22 months) and DS about the same time. They say boys take longer than girls too. **Julianne: I hope you get over your sore throat soon. I have my lovely annual gynecological visit tomorrow, so I'm going to ask that Dr. to also look in my throat. LOL. Hey, it can't be any worse than all the other stuff he looks at, huh? heehe **Sarah: I know exactly how you feel when you say you feel like a part of you is missing when Hannah's not around. I get off work and I am driving so fast to go pick up Jarin. I know one of these days I'll probably run into DH or one of his troopers and I'll end up with a big, fat speeding ticket. Do you think "I have to hurry to see my baby" will be an acceptable excuse? LOL. Too cute about Hannah blowing kisses. =) **LisaB: Don't you feel good knowing you're so important they can't do without you? =) I don't remember Chris at all, so she must have come on after I moved over to TT. Are you still keeping up with both boards? How do you do it? **Helen: Thanks for the feeling better thoughts. Congrats on Day 5 with no bottle. That seems to have worked out pretty easily for you. =) **Beth: The chicken costume sounds adorable. Last year after Christmas we got a Winnie the Pooh snowsuit for sale, so Jarin is going as Winnie the Pooh. Thanks for hoping I feel better. Me, too! **Rita: So you suffer from the wonderful sinus infections too? I wish there was a way to keep from getting them. I was cracking up at Maddy telling you she wants Micro Machines. DS used to have tons of those. So much for playing Barbies and dolls right now, huh? **Katy: Yes, Jarin is a little terror. MIL comments that he is just like DH was when he was a baby - into everything. **SarahW: Ok, call me computer illiterate, but I've never been able to figure out those other boards! (I'm really not stupid, they just don't make sense to me.) Jarin nurses just about exactly the same times as Alex, except for the middle of the night. Although, he does nurse around 5AM, so I guess that could count. He has NEVER taken milk that I've pumped, so he has to have the real thing. I threw away 10 bottles of frozen bm not too long ago. It made me sick to think of all that wasted milk! =( **Little one crying at my leg, so I'd better go. patty and Jarin - 13 1/2 months email: tematheny@ctlnet.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 19:36:06 (MDT)) Hi Moms and Babe's, This is the first time I have been on this chat talk. i have an 11 month old. He will be 1 Nov. 9th. I am so excited about his 1st birthday. A little depressed also. i can't believe how fast 1 year went bye. He is walking full-time, has been for a month. He is now trying to talk. For his birthday we bought him a racecar bed. He doesn't like the crib all that much, but we aren't going to put him in it for a while, because we might be moving to Toronto Ontario, and i don't wnt to confuse him. I was wondering if i could get some suggested on how to weane him off his soother. I don't like the idea of him having one at 1 years old. He stil has a bottle at sleep times, and his soother he is very attached too. I try and give it to him only when he is going to bed, but i find it easier to give it to him when he wants because he is much happier when he has it. Please give me any suggestions on how to get rid of the soother slowly before he is 1. My husband and I are taking him to see Sharon, Lois, and Bram in concert on Friday. He loves watching them on T.V so we are hoping he likes them in real life. Well that is enough chatting for tonight. Hope everyone has a good day! Darleen & Nolan email: j7smith@ciaccess.com Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 20:30:08 (MDT)) Hi ladies, I've just found this site and think it's great that now I'll have some other mothers to share all my concerns and joys with. I have a 14 month daughter named Elisabeth. she's just now starting to walk, as well as make some attempts at talking. She's not very clear yet, but she looks so proud of herself that you can't help but laugh. Anyway my husband and I found out about 2 months ago that we're expecting another the end of march. I have to say I'm still feeling a little bit nervous about them being so close together, but I'm sure it will all work out. I was curious to know where everyone was from, I noticed someone mentioning 6 weeks for mat. leave and it made me feel very fortunate to have had the 9 months off with E that I had. I'm from Ottawa, Canada by the way. Hope to hear back. lisamarie. Lisamarie Wednesday, October 13, 1999 at 21:30:45 (MDT)) Good morning from Julianne & Colton. I can't remember who was talking about eskimo/butterfly kisses on here the other day, but I tried it with Colton yesterday and he just giggled. I have always showered him with lots of hugs and kisses, but just had never tried giving him nosers(that's what we call it!). This morning when he got up I gave him one while DH was holding him. He then leaned into me to give me one and then gave one to DH. Just melted my heart! Thanks for the idea! Sarah: Our little ones sure do have a special place in our hearts. I love looking at all Colton's pictures in my office. I jump at the chance to talk about him every time someone comments on one or asks about him. Dh is so proud of him and loves showing him off to his friends when they come over to work in the polebarn. Hannah sounds so cute blowing kisses. LisaB: I have so many friends with little babies now and even more are expected. I have two more baby showers coming up next week--both on the same day so I can only go to one though. It sure makes me want baby #2. Then Colton will do something really naughty and be a handful and I will wonder why I want another one?! Crystal: Good Christmas gift ideas. I think letting Darrel get used to seeing both the potty and toddler bed ahead of time is a good thing. I still have to buy Colton a potty chair, but his crib turns into a toddler and a day bed. I kind of like him not being able to get out of it since he doesn't have a door on his room. I wouldn't want him wondering around the house by himself at night. Scary thought. Helen: Yeah for Amanda switching to sippy cups with such ease. I am too chicken to try cold turkey with Colton! He still uses the bottle more than the sippy cup. I am such a wimp for his tears especially when he goes to the fridge, tries pulling on the handle and cries "ba-ba". Beth: Great costume for Allison! I did not see any that I liked or would fit in the store and I can not sew--not even a button! Colton has a Harley Davidson pair of overalls, baseball hat, and leather looking coat so I thought he could be a biker tike! SarahW: It sounds like you had lots of fun and food over Thanksgiving. Sorry to hear your morning sickness got the better of you though. Patty: Jesse sure was being a sweetie for you--are you sure he doesn't want something from you? LOL. I hope you and Jarin start feeling better really soon. Colton and I both are feeling much better now. Yeah. Darleen: Welcome. That first year sure goes by fast. It's amazing to look back and see how your child developed from such a tiny helpless little baby into a walking talking toddler! Sorry, no adivce about the suckie--Colton never liked his! Lisamarie: Welcome and congrats on being pg with #2. Wow, 9 months off, must have been great. I only had 8 wks and that was not nearly enough time. I hardly remember what he was like from 2-6 months because it was so hard adjusting to working full time and being a new mom. Oops, I got a little long winded again. Julianne & Colton 15 mo email: jjones@batts.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 07:12:41 (MDT)) Good morning ladies!! SARAH here!!! Well, today is my Friday!!! :) I'm taking tomorrow off! yea!! I finally bought HANNAH a litte popper thingie (you know, the thing you push and the balls pop around?) last night! She loves it. She'll like it better when she can walk. Last night she was so good. She just did her own thing all night. And then when I put her down for bed, it felt like I hadn't seen her all night cause she was so busy keeping to herself!! JULIANNE - I read the posts (yours wasn't there yet) and was going to post myself, and then thought I'd better log off and on again because you probably had posted. And you did! :) I can't remember who was talking about eskimo kisses, but I was talking about butterfly kisses. Too cute about COLTON doing eskimo kisses! :) CRYSTAL - That was me talking about HANNAH being unplanned, not JULIANNE.:) I wouldn't rush potty training! HELEN - Good for AMANDA adjusting to no bottle!! BETH - Glad you made it on yesterday! I was beginning to wonder where you were! We sure do have angels!! RITA - MADDY asking for Micro Machines cracked me up! :) :) LOL I LOVED Barbies, but I also LOVED hot wheels!!! BIRDIE - Have fun this weekend! SARAH W. - Glad you enjoyed your turkey!! Hope the morning sickness passes soon!!! KATY - Sorry, can't help you out with the diaper thing! Are you done with school yet? PATTY - I know what you mean about the speeding home!! :) It sounds like you and I are so much alike! (I don't know if that's good or bad)LOL Hope you guys feel better SOON!!! DARLEEN and NOLAN - WELCOME!! Sorry I don't have any advice on the soother. HANNAH never took one. LISAMARIE and ELISABETH - WELCOME and CONGRATS on your pregnancy!! I am a first time mom and I work full time. DH is the part time Stay At Home Dad (SAHD). I am 28 years old and we are from Denver, Colorado. What about you? OK, I'll probably jump on one more time before I leave today. BUT, if I don't get a chance, I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!!!! :) Sarah and Hannah (13 months) email: smoore@geatoir.cfer.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 07:37:10 (MDT)) Forgot one thing: MORIAH - Thank you soooo much for the picture!!! ALEX is just adorable!!! He's getting so big. Love that picture!! :) Bye! Sarah again!! oops :) Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 07:39:33 (MDT)) Crystal here. Darrel's still sleeping. Then again, I just woke up. I have to leave for work in a few minutes, so I have to make this quick. Last night, SH said that one day, he's going to get on here and read all the posts so he can find out what I say about him. At least I tell him the same things I tell everyone else. I just think it's funny because everytime I log on, he's like "Here we go again. Another hour spent on one site. Another hour before going to bed." He's so funny about it. But he's glad that I have friends of my own, even if all my friends are cyber friends. I have a few close friends here in Ft. Worth, but they're no longer just my friends because DH has also became friends with them. That's cool, though. As for the moving to a toddler bed, I'm actually not planning on moving Darrel for a while. Before he goes to a toddler bed, I want him to be able to get on and off of a bed with little problems and to quit tossing and turning so much. He's a crib traveler. He'll start out on one side of his crib and end up on the other side facing the opposite direction. I don't think it's safe for him to be in a big boy bed yet. I just want him to get used to having it around. If one day he decides that he wants to sleep on it for a nap, I won't tell him no. I'll let him. But I want him to be familiar with it so when he gives up his crib, the new bed won't scare him. Well, my time was cut short. Gotta run to work now. I'll post more later after work. Crystal and Darrel 13 1/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 09:28:59 (MDT)) Just a quick post: Sarah: Thanks for waiting for my post! I'll try to be more timely next week. lol :) Glad Hannah was such a good little girl for you last night. Enjoy your long weekend. Julianne & Colton 15 mo email: jjones@batts.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 10:10:25 (MDT)) Leanne Here You guys are great! This board is getting busier and busier. I will try hard to keep up. All three girls have colds so it has not been a good couple of days. Thanks giving was great as my grandmother and my sister with you new baby came to town. Pretty busy. Well I have some news - I had my first drs. appointment on Tuesday and I am measuring larger for my date!! She said I am about 11 weeks! Which of course freaked me out b/c we have twins on both sides of the family!!! She tried for a heart beat (but with only being 8 weeks did not find one) no such luck. The reason that I am measuring 3 weeks larger could be b/c of this being my fourth pregnancy and my uterus is very titled forward???.. I am hopeing that is the reason. Anyways I guess we just wait till my next appointment (12 weeks Nov. 9) and see where I am at then. What a fright though. Kelli: The best thing to do with Elizabeth having fits is to egnore them! Put her in a place were she can not hurt herself and let them ride though - it is hard but worth it - you will notice a big difference - DONT GIVE IN!!! Diane:Did you have a good Thanksgiving? YUM YUM turkey - just finished it all yesterday with turkey soup! Sarah: Dont worry about the bottle thing with Hannah - Veronica has been off of them for 2 months now but I find that she wakes up early (5am) sometimes and the only way I can get her to go back to sleep for longer is to give her a bottle. Doesnt happen often - but at least I get the sleep. Climbing is always scarey - just watch her every second you can! Julianne: 2 ear infections?? poor Colton I hope he is feeling better soon. Rita: Cynthia had a poop accident yesterday - she is so sick right now that she has diarreah and had an accident in her panties - YUCK what a mess I could not scold her for it as she is not feeling well and she just could not make it fast enough. Lisa - Dont really have any solution to Max's bath - bubbles could do the trick though.. Patty: yes I had Hearburn with all three of my kids and with each it started sooner and got worse at the end! That was the first thing I enjoy once I have had them is the relief of heartburn!! Helen: Good for Amanada and no bottles! Congrats as for the stairs I just would turn her around onto her stomach and go down behind her and pull her legs down so she would know what to do - let me know how it goes. Later ladies!! Leanne 8w5dwith baby #4 & 5???? YIKES, Cynthia 30mon., Veronica 14mon. Alexis 5 Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 10:50:37 (MDT)) Happy Thursday everyone. Only one more day until the weekend. YEAH!! I don't know what was up with Allison last night, but she fell asleep in the car on the way home from the sitter's last night and I finally had to wake her up at 7:00 to feed her. Then she went to bed at her normal time just fine. I guess maybe she was just extra tired for some reason. Rita - too funny about Maddy with the micro machines. I can just see her with all her curls challenging the little boys to races etc. with them. Katy - have you tried the nylon diaper covers that you use for cloth diapers? That might be an option to keep him cool, but keep the diapers covered. Leanne - twins maybe WOW!!! You are a better woman than me that's for sure! Sarah - Hannah sounds too much like Allison lately. Playing independently and being so good. We sure are lucky! Julianne - Colton sounds cute as a biker tike. Lisamarie and Darleen - welcome. You'll love this sight!! Patty - aka deepthroat! LOL!! What, your DH didn't think your voice was sexy all deep and throaty?? Sarah W - the trip to the pumpkin farm sounds fun. We are taking Allison to one on Saturday. They also have a petting zoo, free hay rides and a pick out your own pumpkin place. Should be lots of fun. Lisa B - Max will be a cute little devil. I though for sure you would dress him up in a long black trench coat, put sunglasses on him and give him a fake machine gun so he could be your little MOBster! LOL! Crystal - I agree with all the others. Don't push the potty thing right now as it can lead to serious problems later. My nephew ended up with encorpresis because my SIL tried to train him to early. What that is is a child will become so determined not to go poop in the potty (or ANYWHERE for that matter) that they will force themselves to hold it for as long as they can. This will lead to severe constipation then the feces behind the hard constipated ones will turn to liquid and "leak" out around the hard one causing lots of accidents that the little guys can't control. Allison is almost 17 months and I think we will start in about a month or so just sitting her on it, but not forcing anything and see how it goes from there. Remember too that even though your friend's child may be going she is also a girl and everyone says that girls generally train much easier and much earlier than boys. Good luck! Well, I'd better get back to work. Where's Kelli, Moriah and Shelly been lately. I miss hearing from them. Talk to you ladies later. Beth and Allison (17 months) email: bobwite@msn.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 13:39:10 (MDT)) Hi all. This is Birdie. Just a quick hello. We are having a major wind storm and i'm afraid the power may go out. i wanted to ask one quick question to all you experts. Noah had his checkup today and got his shots. he was soooo good. Anyway, our ped asked how old our house was and we told him 50 years and he said that noah needs to have a blood test to check for lead. Our house was checked before we moved in but he says it's routine. I didn't have it done today. It has to be done before he's one. I am so stressed out about him having a big needle in his arm and blood drawn. I hate to think he has to go through any pain. Have any of you heard of this or have any of your babies had it done? I wanted to check with the experts. Talk again soon. Birdie and Noah (10 + months) Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 14:09:49 (MDT)) Hello from Rita I just don't seem to have as much time as I used to these days. Work takes up too much of my time, LOL. We went out to a toy store last night to pick up a birthday gift for Maddy's cousin who turns five this weekend. We ended up doing some of our Christmas shopping at the same time. Not for Maddy, of course, since she is way too aware of what we buy. We did get Amy's gift, though. I know that it is early, but we are swamped with all of the nieces and nephews as well as both girls having birthdays close to Christmas. I don't know how I managed that one! Fertile only at the same time once a year? Welcome Darleen and Lisamarie. Darleen - We didn't take away the binky until age two. We were just too chicken to take it away any sooner. We started by letting Maddy only have it at nap time and at night for a few months and then we stopped giving to her altogether. We only had one tough night. Her ennunciation improved so much after the binky was gone. We plan to remove Amy's binky once she starts walking. The one good thing about the binky was that it kept Maddy from putting alot of toys and other inappropriate things in her mouth. Lisa B - DH would love Maddy & Amy to be tomboys. Maddy does have a few babies and a great play kitchen that she likes. (I would have given the same toys to a son, too). I have always tried not to reinforce too many gender stereotyped images with specific toys. She is just not a fussy girl about clothes and hair things. Santa will have to think about Micro Machines since they are very small and could end up in Amy's mouth. Patty - Yep, I could have done without the sinus infections last year. Remember when I was so sick right after Amy was born? I don't want to replay that lovely time this year, especially since I can't take alot of stuff anymore. Well, its time to get back to work. Take care everyone! Rita & Maddy email: ritad@home.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 14:13:36 (MDT)) Well- hello there! Sarah g here. Long time no post! Thanks for the support from my last post guys :) We're hanging in there, I'm really trying to support dh, but he my just run out of luck if he doesn't stir up some initiative. Isaac has been just a sweet heart lately. He's moved into a bed and has adjusted great. We went to a pumpkin farm with his Tot class yesterday; had a great time. He picked his own pumpkin and actually carved a face in it with a Snoopy pumpkin knife. It's all straight lines for eyes, nose and a horizontal line for a mouth. He was so determined- I couldn't help him at all! Stacey- Congratulations on baby Alexa! Soon 2 kids will be easier and easier! You're blessed with a quick labor. That's so great! Leanne- Hooray for Cynthia!!!! Big congrats! Hope your dr appt goes well. Would love to post more- but got lots of mommy work to do!!!! Sarah g and Isaac (29 months today) and Sofia (6 months) email: gat_men@hotmail.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 16:29:35 (MDT)) Hello everyone, no personals today, but I've got a question... I've been pumping milk once a day at work, for Alex to have in a bottle at daycare. Lately, I've only been able to pump 1-2 oz a day (less milk due to pg) Should I switch Alex to cow's milk for the bottle, or try to wean him off it - he has it just before naptime in the afternoon. How can I convince him to take the cow's milk? He's never liked it from a cup, though I haven't tried it in a bottle before. Should I mix the cow's milk and breast milk for a while to get him used to the taste? How do people usually switch from formula to cow's milk? Thanks for the help! SarahW and Alex (13mo) email: swellman@knightpiesold.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 16:43:57 (MDT)) I'm sure some of you may vaguely remember me. I wrote of few times before about my son crying everytime I put him in my churches nursery. Well, he still is refusing to stay in there for any length of time, but that is not why I wrote. I need some help. Elijah has been having constant diarrhea for the last few days and his butt is extremely sore and red. He has little red bumps all over his butt, and some of them have opened. I have been trying every diaper cream on the market without seeing much of a difference. Please, is there anything that I can do to help alleviate my little boy's pain? I feel awful listening to him cry every time I change him. I literally have to hold him down. I want to see him on the road to recovery. Is there anything else I can use/do besides diaper cream? I know that he is getting the diarrhea from teething, but it has never been this bad before. It is because he is getting his molars and other teeth in all at once. I will be checking the posting as often as I can to see if anyone has any advice on what I can do. Thanks so much. MaryC & Elijah @ 14mths Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 19:45:11 (MDT)) Hi everyone last night was really bad so I no personals tonight. Angel who is 15 months old started cutting both bottom molars yesterday and didnt sleep very well . In the middle of the night she was awake off an on for 3 hours. I was so exhausted today!! Also tomorrow we are going to the doctor to get Angel's MMR needle. My fingers are crossed and I hope it goes well. I mean last time she had a needle I calmed her down by breastfeeding her after but now we are all done that so ..... take care and i will write this weekend and include personals Diane and Angel - 15 months Diane Morgan email: jadimorgan@home.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 19:55:12 (MDT)) Howdy all. It's Crystal. Darrel took 6 steps at day care today. He seemed so proud of himself but rather hesitant about it at first. He was heading towards me. :) Dh says that Darrel was really looking for him. Men are so concieted, especially if they are daddies. I have a sailor outfit that was given to me for Darrel, so I may put him in that for Halloween, depending on the weather. Can't really afford to buy anything right now. But Darrel does look so adorable in it. Birdie: Darrel was tested for lead at 6 months. Even if your house was tested before you moved in, it may still be a good idea to get Noah tested. There may have been lead that was missed. For Darrel's lead test, they just did a finger prick. Darrel didn't have lead poisoning, but it's still worth getting him checked. SarahW: I think you can go ahead and try giving Alex whole milk in the bottle to see if he'll take it. If he doesn't take it, try mixing. In the end, if you're persistant, Alex will adjust. He'll drink whatever is available when he gets thirsty enough. It'll take him a few days to adjust to it, but he won't have a choice, especially if you're not producing enough milk for him. As far as the potty training goes, I don't feell like I'm rushing it. It won't even be started until after Christmas. And it's not neccesarily true that girls are easier than boys. I wasn't potty trained until I was about 2 1/2. My younger brother was trained at 18 months. My mom started potty training us both at 16 months. Darrel will be at least 18 months before we start the process. Right now, he just goes to the bathroom whenever dh and I do. He's beginning to learn how to use the handle to flush the toilet. He's getting accostmed to the pot and to the sounds and watching things go down the toilet. We keep the door clsed so that Darrel soesn't put things in that doesn't belong in there, since he can't yet open the door. He doesn't even have a potty yet. When I can tell that he's going poop, I let him know so that he knows what he's doing so he knows what the urge feels like. This way when he learns how to say "poop"he can tell me. I know he's not ready for potty training right know, but there are still things I can do to prepare him, like getting a potty and keeping it in his sight. Yes, I wan t to start training him as soon as I can, but there are still things that need to happen before I can. If he's still not saying anything or not interested at 18 months, that's fine. I won't push it. That's not what I'm trying to do. I'm just trying to get him ready for using the potty. Yes, I'd love it if he was potty trained by the time he was two, but that's not my goal. I just want him to be used to seeing the potty around so he won't be afraid of it when he is ready. I hope this makes sense. Well, gotta go. Dh is waiting to use the computer. I'll talk some more later. Sorry for the novel and for getting on the soapbox. Crystal and Darrel and DH here email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 20:04:23 (MDT)) Hi mommies. Jarin is still awake and I am dead tired. I had him almost asleep and DD came home. When the door shut, he woke up and then she had to talk to him. Now he's got his second wind, so who knows when he'll be ready for bed. He has got quite the runny nose going on now. Poor little guy - it's like a little faucet. My voice is soooo deep today and it keeps drifting in and out. My poor Kindergarteners - they were so funny. they kept asking me if I was really ok. My gyn. gave me a prescription for amoxicillin, so hopefully that helps soon. Now I have to remember to eat yogurt or I'll end up with a lovely yeast infection! **Darleen & Nolan and Lisamarie & Elisabeth; Welcome. You'll love it here. Darleen, my son had his pacifier until he was about 2 1/2, so I can't help you with getting rid of it earlier. **Julianne: It was me and Jarin who do the Eskimo kisses. I always say "Give me your nose" and then when he does, I say "Nose, nose, nose, nose". I'm glad Colton is giving you Eskimo kisses now. Isn't it the sweetest thing? I think the biker tike outfit sounds too cute. Glad you two are feeling better. =) **Sarah: I've often thought we sound a lot alike too. I know, kinda scary, huh? LOL. Hey, enjoy your day off tomorrow. I'm so jealous! **Leanne: So, are you really 11 or 8 weeks pg? I thought I was 5 weeks when I was pg with Jarin and I ended up being 10. Seems my last period was just a fluke. **Beth: I am REALLY deep throat today! My BIL called and thought I was DH when I answered. LOL **Birdie: Don't know what to tell you about the test, but I'm sure you're stressing. Jarin had blood tests when he was dehydrated, so I know how you feel. So not fun. =( **Rita: Hey, let's both boycott sinus infections this year!! **SarahW: I know lots of moms on here mixed part bm with part cow's milk and just kept increasing the cow's milk and decreasing the bm over time. Good luck. **MaryC: When DS was a baby, Johnson's Corn Starch cleared up his bad diaper rash better than any cream. Hope Elijah's rash is better soon. Poor little guy. **I have to get Jarin to get tired now. Yeah, right. LOL. I have training all morning tomorrow, so at least I won't have to be talking to teach. Have a good Friday, all! Patty and Jarin 13 1/2 months email: tematheny@ctlnet.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 21:30:29 (MDT)) Crystal here. Couldn't sleep tonight. That's what I get for sleeping in this morning. In my last post, I'm sorry if I came across as a b---h. I didn't mean to sound like that. I know that it's not good to force potty training on a child, but I do believe that there are ways to start the process without forcing it, no matter what the age of a child is or whether they're ready to use the potty. That's what I'm doing with Darrel right now. At the same time, I'm afraid to wait too long because of how stubborn Darrel is. I know that stubbornness is typical toddler behavior, but Darrel has alsways been very stubborn, like insisting on sleeping on his stomach as young as a week old. I figure that I can start some of the toilet training now before the toddler stubbornness kicks in, while he's still somewhat reasonable and will listen most of the time. When he starts using the potty, he'll think that it's his decision. Mostly, it will be. I'm not concerned about when he is completely toilet trained as long as he is by the time he's four. That's when he'll be starting kindergarten. I don't want him to go through the embarrassments that I did and have "accidents" up untill I was 13 years old. My mom gives me a hard time about it even now, saying that I was never completely toilet trained. Come to find out, I had a weak bladder. It's under control now, thanks to the kegels. MaryC: Darrel has been getting bad diarhea due to teething, too. He's working on three molars. He also gets severe diaper rashes that bleed. I use Desitin for it. It takes about a week for the blisters to heal. I also use corn starch. I don't wipe it off unless he has a bm because the wiping is what causing the blisters to open. Darrel gets the rashes so often that he has scars from them. Sunlight and keeping the bottom exposed to air as much as possible also helps. Vaseline will help protect it from urine, which can irritate it, and bm's which can cause and infection. Or, you can take him the dr. and get a prescription strength diaper rash ointment, which should start clearing it up within a day or two. I've had to do that a few times because hegot a rash that covered his whole bottom and bled. I have to put ointment on Darrel at every diaper change. Otherwise, the rash will come back within a few hours. If zinc oxide (that's what most ointments contain) doesn't even put a dent in the rash, I'd definitely take him to the dr. It could be a yeast infection. It it helps even a little at first, then it will clear the whole rash with time. With Darrel's rashes, the ointments only get the part that doesn't bleed the first day or two and then start on the worse. Hope this info helps. That's it for now. Talk some more later. Crystal and Darrel 13 1/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Thursday, October 14, 1999 at 23:46:20 (MDT)) Hi everyone, Louise & James here. As usual, I've missed a few days and am having a marathon catching up session. Sadly, my Uncle died a couple of days ago so things have been a little hectic and very sad. But at the same time it has also been a releif that he's no longer suffering. Well, James has now officially hit toddlerhood with a couple of major tantrums! Luckily, they haven't yet happened anywhere public or where I'm likely to find it embarassing so I've been able to ignore him and laugh them off - won't be long before I'm tearing my hair out I'm sure! He is such a little monkey, he is also a climber - he has nearly managed to climb right over the stair gates on a couple of occasions and loves to swing from the curtains or the dining table. I have my heart in my mouth most of the time. He is so funny though when he knows he is doing something that he's not supposed to - like for instance he knows not to touch the fender on the fireplace, but occasionally he will take his sock off, sit smiling angelically at me while touching it behind his back with his sock! I have to keep a stern face but really want to laugh. PATTY - I would love to meet you when you come to London! Our little monsters can get to know each other and teach each other all sorts of new tricks! CRYSTAL - I like the idead of using this page as your home page! Much quicker. Glad things are working out having DH home, of course there will be some 'readjustment' necessary. LISA B - we also had an episode where James has gone off his bath for a short while. Hopefully Diane's suggestion of bathing together will have solved the problem, if not, could it be down to tiredness? That was certainly the case with James, we actually had to bring his bedtime forward by 15 minutes and he started to enjoy his bath again. Of course you may not bath him in the evening in which case ignore me! DARLEEN & NOLAN - welcome! I understand your concern with the binky - James only has his to fall asleep with but he is totally adddicted to it and I don't dare remove it in case he's up all night! Let me know if you find a solution! LISAMARIE & ELISABETH - welcome! And congratulations! I guess life will be tough for a few months with 2 so close in age, but I'm sure you will love it when they're old enough to look out for each other and be friends. BIRDIE - I know things may be a bit different in the UK, but I've been down the same route with the lead test. Our house is 160 years old, the couple who lived in it before us had it tested as they had a baby girl, but I still had to get James tested. As Crystal said, it really is only a finger prick so don't worry too much (although I know anything like that is upsetting). Talk later (and my new resolution is not to miss any more days as it's such a nightmare catching up!) Louise & James email: rnash78035@aol.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 04:48:46 (MDT)) Louise again - forgot to say - iof any of you would like to e-mail me pictures of your little ones, then please do, I'd love to see them. I haven't asked before because our e-mail was being very unreliable, but it seems to be fixed now. That's it! Louise & James email: rnash78035@aol.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 04:51:11 (MDT)) Yeah it is Friday. I am ready for the weekend. The weather has been really nice-perfect for fall this week so far. I am planning on taking Colton on a fun adventure Saturday. My mom, sister and her two kids are coming with us to take a hour and a half pumpking train ride. They have entertainment (fake train robbery & such) on the train ride, refreshments at the train station and at the end each child gets to pick out a pumpkin to take home. It will be Colton's first train ride. Should be fun. Yesterday when I picked Colton up at daycare they said he had a great day and that he was really happy and had lots of fun playing on the slide inside. However, today when I dropped him off he started crying--hasn't done that in weeks, why start again today? Then the teacher in the baby section said that when Colton was over there he pinched a baby's cheek so they brought him back to the toddler area. I don't understand why they keep bringing him back in the baby area to begin with. When I left I just didn't have the best feeling. Some days it just sucks having to work and not being able to be a SAHM. I will have to talk with the director about how Colton is doing there and see what is going on so that I feel better about it. Leanne: Sorry your girls are sick--hope they feel better soon. Sounds like you are going to have lots to think about until your next dr appt! Colton is feeling much better now. Birdie: Colton had to have the lead screening blood test when he was 6 mo because of my DH's hobbie of working on old trucks and having Colton exposed to all those parts. I hate to say this, but it was terrible. They didn't just poke his finger, they took a big vile of blood. He started screaming and I just lost it so I cried right along with him. I hope Noah just needs a finger poke! Rita: I have got to get a start on my Christmas shopping. I refuse to shop at the malls when it is so crowded--way too annoying. I was looking through a toy catalog yesterday and saw a plastic hi-lo that Colton could ride--even has a fork lift that moves. I think DH wants to order that for Colton! SarahG: Yeah for Isaac carving his pumpkin by himself--what fun. SarahW. I switched Colton from formula to cows milk around 11 mo. I mixed them together and slowly went from more formula to all milk and it worked great. Good luck. MaryC: Sorry to hear about poor Elijah's sore bottom. Colton has never had a problem like that so I don't have any suggestions. Hope it starts to heal very soon. Diane: Good luck with the MMR shot. Hope Angel's teeth don't bother her so much tonight. Crystal: Yeah for Darrel walking to YOU! The sailor outfit should be cute for Halloween. Patty: Sounds familiar. Colton will always be wide-eyed if DH comes home during his bed-time routine. DH gives me that "I'm sorry" innocent look and then has Colton wrestling around with him on the floor in no time. Louise: You and your family have my condolences on your uncle's passing. How cute of James touching the fireplace with his sock. Have a great weekend everyone. Julianne & Colton 15 mo email: jjones@batts.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 07:27:17 (MDT)) Hi everyone...remember me????(It's Cynthia) It's been quite some time since I've posted. I've been reading everything, but just staying off the board for awhile. Work has been murder lately and I am so swamped with no releif in sight!!! Adam is growing and talking so much now. Although I don't think anybody but DH and I understand him. I've tried introducing potty training, but he hates the toilet. I'm not going to push it. Although he is extremely interested when DH goes pee. Too bad he can't reach the toilet standing up yet!!! DARLENE: Adam was also very attached to his soother, although he only had it at nap & bedtime or if he was really upset. I took it away cold turkey. He was a tad upset the first nap time and then again at bed time, but he forgot about it quickly. He was about 18 or 19 months old when I took it away. LISAMARIE: I am from Ottawa too!!!! There's another girl(CathyG) on this board also from Ottawa. Without naming your address, where about do you live in Ottawa? I live in the east end. BETH: Your chicken costume sounds cute. Adam is absolutley amazed with all the halloween decorations in the stores right now. He's not too keen on strangers, so I don't know how he'll do on halloween night. PATTY: I hope you're feeling better. Can I send you Adam to toilet train???? Wow, 22 months. That's great. My too older boys were about 23 and 25 months and I though that was pretty good. Unfortunately, Adam doesn't show any interest. I'm not sure who wrote about their baby removing his diaper all the time, but I have the same problem. Last night I put Adam to bed with his jammies on. When I checked on him at about 10:00, he had somehow, undone his jammies, pulled off the diaper, stood up and peed on the floor (through the crib rails!!!). Then he laid down and slept semi naked!!! So if you have any ideas, let me know. OK, I better go. I'll try to keep up, but it's hard with all my work. I usually check on the weekends from home. Cynthia & Adam at 22 months today email: cynthia.howard@nrc.ca Friday, October 15, 1999 at 08:32:42 (MDT)) Crystal here. Just two quick personals: Louise: I'm soory to hear about your uncle. How's your mom taking it? I remember you mentioning they were twins. Sometimes, twins take it pretty hard because they can be closer than most siblings. Julianne: Some day cares have security cameras. If yours does, try popping in during lunch to see what's going on in his room and watching through the camera. As far as putting him in the baby-room, there could be several reasons for that. They could be short on staff, so they would have to ratio out, or put as many children in a room under one teacher as they are allowed to do. Or, he may feel more comfortable in the baby room. I work at a Children's Palace. Darrel is in one of my classes because the teacher for his age group quit. However, there are some kids who would be in his class who are in the two year old room because they are closer to two. Also, when a child is close enough in age and maturity, we alternate classes for them. For example, we have a two year old who is very mature, potty trained, and almost 3. She goes to the three year old room in the morning and comes back to the two year old room during lunch. If this isn't the case, I would definitely talk to the director. And if you continue having a bad feeling about KinderCare, then it would be best to find a new day care or an in-home day care. Also, welcome to all the newcomers. Sorry I didn't welcome you sooner. I can't post as often as I used to, so my mind gets slippery having to catch up on all the posts from during the day. Hi to everyone else. I'll post some more after work. Crystal and Darrel almost 14 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 08:41:22 (MDT)) Hello my dear friends, it's Megan I really hate not being able to get on here. Do you guys still love me? I think about you all the time and miss hearing about what's going on with your little ones. This monkey is keeping me so busy lately. He is so active and I have to watch him or he can get in to trouble in a matter of seconds! Sound familiar? Anyway, how do the rest of you handle them bumping their heads? It seems like Ben bumps his head or falls over a couple of times a day! It makes me feel like such a bad mommy. It always seems to happen when I've just turned around for a second. The other day, he pulled his little activity table over on top of him and bumped his head on the floor within seconds of me looking away. Sometimes I think I should buy him a helmet! I don't want him to be brain damaged. Benjamin is standing well with support and walking around things a little bit. He acts like he wants to venture out and try to stand on his own or walk a bit but nothing yet. He has become so vocal and expressive as well. He plays "peek a boo" with his clothes and it is so cute! Also, he points at everything and says "dat". That is his version of "what's that" which is what we've been saying to him and then naming objects. He knows the names of so many items like light, apple, clock, flowers, trees, Max (our parrot), doggy, etc... He says Moo, da-da, ma-ma, Saddy (my mom's dog), and trys to say many more. We still have a toothless wonder on our hands if you can believe it. I'm starting to wonder if they will ever come in! I am ok. We are really needing to get in to a house however. The duplex we rent is really nice but small. With Ben's birthday and Christmas coming up, I don't know where we will put everything! DH has recruiters looking for better jobs so hopefully something good will come along. We may even be moving out of state. Anyway, my degree is in Zoology and I just don't think I could go back part time in a field like that. I really need to be doing something at home but what? Ugh! Don't you just love fall? It's been really warm here in Utah this week and we've been out hiking with Ben in the backpack. This weekend it's suppose to be in the low 50's. I guess Winter is just around the corner huh? Just a couple of personals before I go and then have a great weekend everyone! Birdie- You should go ahead and have Noah checked for lead. With a house of your age, you certainly have lead around. Not only could it be in chipping or peeling paint, but in your water supply as well. Lead solder used to be used in pipes and it can leach into the water. You need to have your water checked or buy a water test kit yourself. I would also install a water filter. Culligan makes a good faucet mounted one. Opening and closing windows with paint around them can cause lead dust to be released and inhaled. Your soil could also be contaminated. I don't mean to scare you but there has been a big lead awareness campaign here in Utah. Even if he gets checked once and comes out ok, you still have to have him checked periodically as well. If you do any remodeling, you need to have a professional help you if there could be a chance of lead exposure. Actually, any house built before 1978 probably has lead paint. Every one should be concerned about this serious issue. The EPA has info they can send you on protecting your family from lead. I think their web site is www.epa.gov Mary C.- I wouldn't let the diarrhea go on for too many days without seeing your doctor. You don't want your little one to get dehydrated. Only clean his bottom with cotton balls and warm water, no baby wipes. You can also give him acidophilus powder in his food for a few days to replace the good bacteria in his colon. This will help with his diarrhea. You can get the powder at your health food store, ask your pharmacist how to use it, or email me. If he likes yogurt it will do the same thing. To the rest of you, I'll try to get back here Monday. If anyone wants to email me I seem to be able to keep up with that a little better. Love you all, Megan and Benjamin (1 on Oct. 29th) email: dtandmm@slkc.uswest.net Friday, October 15, 1999 at 08:46:44 (MDT)) It's Crystal here again. I thought of something for the diaper stripping problem. How about putting diaper on backwards or using duct tape? Makes it harder for them to get it off. Well, I'm going for real this time. I have to get ready for work, and darrel woke up and is not very happy right now. Two of his molars are trying to come in the rest of the way. Poor child. Crystal again. Friday, October 15, 1999 at 08:54:16 (MDT)) Katy here Sarah- No, I'm not done with school yet. Unfortunately i'm stuck here until June, because we need the money fromthe financial aid. And then I'm going to turn right around and go into grad school in the fall, I hope, because there isn't much you can do with a bachelor's degree in English. Crystal-Duct tape is a good idea, but then it might be hard on us trying to take the diaper off to change him. LOL. And I don't think putting the diaper on backward is a good idea. Some of those diapers are especially designed for boys and have that extra leak guard in the front. Thanks to eveyone on their opinions in the diaper issue. Hugs to all!! Katy and Liam email: princess__bride@hotmail.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 09:45:06 (MDT)) Hi from Rita We have been having gorgeous, warm weather again. It seems so weird to go out and get pumpkins when you are wearing shorts. I would love to have a real, crisp fall and of course, a least one white Christmas. One of these years we hope to spend Christmas where it snows. My MIL would be upset if we were away at Christmas, so it just isn't a possibility yet. Mary C - Crystal had some good advice on the rash. I would have it checked out just to make sure that it is not a yeast infection. When Maddy had some bad rashes, I would always try to give her time to "air out" every day. Warm baths with cornstarch are also soothing for sore bottoms. Louise - My condolences to you and your mom. I hope that your mom is doing okay. We lost DH's brother last year and it has taken awhile for the family to come to terms with it. James sounds like a sweetie. It is so hard not to laugh sometimes, even when our babies are naughty. Sarah G - Isaac sounds so cute with the pumpkin. We are going out a pumpkim patch in Livermore this weekend. Much as I would love to go to Half Moon Bay (Hi Moriah!), I know that is is too hard to get there. Maddy is very aware of Halloween this year and I am sure that she will also have to carve her own pumpkin. Megan - Yes, I still love you! Wow, is Ben really going to be a year old? Time has certainly flown. I remember when we were all PG like it was yesterday. Amy has already been out of my body longer than I carried her and that blows me away. She is already trying to be so independent, too. Julianne - That sounds like a great gift for Colton. I wish that we had a yard so that we could have something like that for the girls. Maddy is going to get a bike (and we will have to take her places to ride it) and we are going to get Amy some kind of ride-on for her BD. We are broke in December and January with Xmas and BDs. Well, time for some work. Take care everyone! Rita & Maddy email: ritad@home.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 09:57:15 (MDT)) Hi from LisaB. After 2 nights of me bathing with Max he went in the tub by himself last night! He enjoyed it - until daddy washed his hair. Max HATES water on his face but won't let you cover his eyes with a washcloth, won't let you tip his head back very far, and won't wear one of that hat deals that routes the water off his face (therefore he gets his face wet and throws a fit). SARAH W: Has Alex ever slept through the night? It would wipe me out to get up during the night and you're probably esp. tired as you are pregnant (then again - you're up to pee so you might as well nurse, huh?!). Max slept thru for months and then, around 12 months, decided he wanted a 2 am nursing for about 2 weeks. I had been lazy and let him come in bed with me but then started nursing him in the recliner and putting him back in his crib - after 2 nights he decided it wasn't worth it and started sleeping again. I started Max on whole milk around 11 months. He took 5 oz bottles and I started with 4 oz of breast milk and 1 oz of cow's. I would adjust by 1 oz every week or so, if he seemed to be taking the bottles well. Within a few weeks he was on 100% cow's milk - and decided at that point to give up the bottle and just use his cup!!! PATTY: Chris just joined TT. I generally quickly scan posts and skip the new ones - just read ones from my "neighbors" Chris and Tonya and from some of the oldies I remember (Birdie, Jenni, Rita, etc.). Chris and I have started e-mailing each other so I'll probably quite the board "cold turkey" soon! I cleaned out the deep freeze last weekend and threw away 50 ounces of frozen breast milk - DH laughed at me as I was about ready to cry seeing all that hard work and time going down the drain. :-( DARLEEN: Welcome! I was kinda emotional also when Max turned 1 - they just grow up WAY too fast, don't they?! Max never really used a soother but I've read they are ok until 2-3 years of age. Several ladies at daycare just took them away from their kids - the kids were fussy for about 1-2 days and then forgot about it. Of course one of them decided to just revert to sucking his thumb instead - haha!!! LISAMARIE: Welcome! I'm from Missouri - about in the center of the continental United States. SARAH: Here's a stupid ? for you (and yes, SOME questions are stupid!!). I've wondered ever since that song was so popular ... what EXACTLY are butterfly kisses? Are they regular kisses without the "smack"?! LEANNE: Here's hoping no twins!!! Actually I'm probably NUTS but twins run in my family and DH and I are both kinda hoping we have twins the next time. We were terrified of the thought when I was preggers with Max but now that we have some parenting experience under our belts we think it would be fun (but, yes, definitely a lot of work). BETH: I love your MOBster costume idea - I'll have to do that NEXT year!!! BIRDIE: I would ask the doctor exactly how they do the test so you know if it'll be a finger prick or something worse. Take a special new toy for Noah to get just before or just after the procedure. Like other people said, lead can be in paint, water pipes, dirt (even if have grass in yard), etc. Lead poisoning causes various development delays so testing is very important. RITA: I also think toys shouldn't be gender-specific. I got Max a baby doll and DH threw a fit until he got used to it. I plan for Max to have the kitchen set AND a workshop play set both - if I can find some cheap at yard sales (I'm too cheap to buy stuff like that new unless for Christmas or something). They are predicting 85 here in Mid-Missouri today but down in the 40s with snow showers on Monday. You can come to see me for Christmas, although it's been years since we had a White Christmas!!! MARY C: CALL THE DOCTOR - severe diarhea can lead to dehydration and that's nothing to mess with. CRYSTAL: I like the idea of getting Darrel used to the whole potty routine before you start to train him - I might have to borrow some of your ideas!!! LOUISE: I'm so sorry about your uncle :-( I'm glad he's no longer suffering now and is in a better place. I have some pictures of Max that are 4 months old or so (I don't have a scanner so I can only con people into scanning pictures for me once in a blue moon). Let me know if you want to see them and I can e-mail them to you! JULIANNE: I'm surprised they put Colton in the baby room. Most daycare laws (which vary from state to state) require a higher staff/child ratio in the baby rooms and therefore I would think they would want to "ship them out" as soon as they turn 1. I would discuss your concerns with the director. If they don't seem to take you seriously think about changing daycares. I don't mind working ONLY as I know Max has a great in-home daycare provider and that he absolutely loves his sitter and all the other kids and that he gets loads of attention and the sitter has the same child-rearing philosophies as me (how's THAT for a run-on sentences?!). MEGAN: Of COURSE we still love you, sweetie! :-) :-) LisaB & Max (13 months) email: lisa_lab@hotmail.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 10:53:26 (MDT)) Hello everyone. It took forever to catch up on all the posts. Wednesday I went shopping to Medford OR and yesterday, I was just busy. My soon to be 12 yrs. son came home from school with two detentions. Boy was I mad. I made him do chores all afternoon and no TV. I told him to start acting his age. Well, DUH, he is. I'm just not ready for this preteen thing. Tomorrow we are going to the pupmkin patch with my oldest sis and her two boys. We go to the same one every year. When ex-dh and I lived near Moriah (Half Moon Bay area) we had a special pumpkin patch we went to every year. if you all can stand one more comment on potty training, and for those of you who asked what Encopresis is, just look at Beths post on thursday. That's exactly what it is. Tay started holding all bm's. Then all the other stuff would leak around it, making the most smelly mess you could imagine. I gave him mineral oil forever (dr.s orders) but that also caused a gross mess. He still leaked, but this time it was oily and orange. I now wonder if I deprived him of vitamins and that is why he is short. When we moved here, the new Dr. told me about Senekot. That was a Godsend, its natual, and it gave tummy cramps. I know that sounds awful, but it helped Tay know when it was coming. if you hold bm's long enough, not only do you stretch out your intestines, but the muscles around the rectum wear out. So Tay would be running around outside and bam! He dirty himself without even knowing it was coming. We made alot of mistakes with him. And once a kid gets a certain age, then it becomes a control Mom issue. Much like anorexia. So then there was counciling. Now Jesse is following the pattern, except, his is more laziness. His attitude is, "Taylor pooped his pants" so why shouldn't Jesse. I don't know how to deal with this. I had a friend whose oldest wet everynight and then her middle son started too. For the same reasons as Jesse's. I bought Riley a potty, and he sits on it often. But I won't force him. He usually does it when I'm using the bathroom. Sometimes he sits and grunts so hard he farts. Then he gets up and flushes the big potty. LOL. I don't think any of you will force potty training, and having the potty there to get used too is a great idea. I just wanted to share my story hoping it saves someones else from 10 + years of misery. Well, I'de better publish this novel and get down to the house work. Have a good day, except you, SarahW, rubbing in 3 pies!!!! You BRAT LOL! SHELLY & RILEY 18 months email: shellyvance@hotmail.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 11:48:55 (MDT)) Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't posted in a few days. Elizabeth and I have been under the weather. I've had terrible stomach aches and diarrhea. No fun! I could really use your advice right now... Elizabeth has developed a bad cough, runny nose and has a slight fever. I called our doctor's office and the nurse told me to get a cough syrup w/ both an expectorant and suppressant. Well, that is starting to loosen up her chest and make the coughs slightly more productive. But, she's getting red around her eyes like her eyes are watery, her nose is still running and she is still coughing pretty good. ANY SUGGESTIONS on what to give her? I have a cool mist humidifier running and I've been giving her Tylenol, Rotitussin (w/expectorant & suppressant.) I feel like she may need an anhistamine... I don't know. Elizabeth acts like she's feeling fine most of the time. Can you tell that I'm a first time mommy?? This is Elizabeth's first major cold and I hate it! My dr's office is closed right now and I don't think this is an emergency. PLUS, I really want her to sleep better tonight. We got NO sleep last night. I maybe got an hour. I'll check in later. THANKS!!!!! Kelli & Elizabeth, 15 months today email: rkncs@aol.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 12:33:13 (MDT)) Hi, I am posting this for my sister who isn't on-line. She has a one year old boy. He goes to bed like a dream at night, in his crib, but when she tries to get him to go for a nap in the same crib, he screams so badly that its impossible.... Have any of you experienced this? Any tips...?? Thanks, Chandi Please copy your response to me at my home e-mail too: winestone@earthlink.net Thanks! Chandi Wyant email: winestone@earthlink.net Friday, October 15, 1999 at 12:46:30 (MDT)) Thanks Patty, Crystal, Megan, Rita & Lisa B.! I couldn't believe all the good advice I got from so many people. I did call my Dr. and was told by the nurse all the things I can try to get rid of Elijah's horrible rash. Many of the things she said, I read on this board. If it doesn't clear up by next week, I'm to bring him in to get it checked. I really like the info. on using cornstarch and plan to get some ASAP, I also cannot use diaper wipes and the nurse was in favor of using Desatin or A&D diaper cream. The important thing is to make sure his butt stays dry to get this rash healed. So thanks again. I definately know where I can go when I need help with my toddler's problems. MaryC & Elijah Friday, October 15, 1999 at 13:19:07 (MDT)) I am glad this board has been busy today. I am actually all caught up at work and like finding new messages every time I check. I forgot to let you all know that I spoke with my friend with the triplets. Two of them are home now. One came home last week Saturday and the other on Monday. The last should be coming home next week Monday. They have to be hooked up to heart monitors while they sleep but that is it. Her doctor is coming to her house to check up on them later next week. All three are over 4 pounds now. She has lots of help though. A nurse is there 2 nights a week so she gets to sleep through the night already. Her husband even gets up on the weekends for the feedings so she can sleep then too. Her Dh is just great with feedings, diaper changes, baths, making supper, laundry ... Wherever did she find him? I am going to see her next week Friday. I am so excited. Cynthia: Hello. I hope work calms down for you soon so you can post more often! Too funny about Adam peeing through the crib rails. Luckily Colton doesn't know how to take his diaper off yet. However this morning 1 arm was out of his sleeper! Megan: So glad to hear from you too and get an update on Ben. Colton has a nice bruise on his forehad from hitting the wall while climbing on the couch. What is a mother to do? Rita: We are so lucky here in MI to get to enjoy all the different seasons. Winter lasts way too long though. My favorite is the fall. LisaB: Colton is the same way with washing his hair. He will stand up and try to run away from the water I am pouring over his head. Thanks for asking about butterfly kisses. I was wondering the same thing but was too chicken to ask! I am very thankful that Colton only is at daycare 2 days a week or I don't think I could handle working. Shelly: Wow, what a time you had w/ Tay and Jesse pooping! Hope it goes better w/ Riley. have fun at the pumpkin patch tomorrow. Kelli: I sure hope you and Elizabeth feel better soon. Sometime kids get a cold in their eyes when they are sick and that makes their eyes run. Colton had that w/ his latest cold. However, it did turn into ear infection--so be on the look out. If it keeps up for more than a week your dr should write a prescription because regular colds start improving after a week--per my dr at Colton's visit last week. Can you tell I have had way too much time on my hands today? 2 monster posts. Wow. Still an hour to go, whatever will I do... Julianne & Colton 15 mo email: jjones@batts.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 13:22:38 (MDT)) Hi from LisaB. 3:30 on a Friday and NO motivation to work ... so here I am!!! RITA: I saw on BT that Amy likes the bumble balls. Max has one and he loves to play with it - ONLY if he has one of the bumbles stuck in his mouth! His entire head shakes as do his hands and arms from holding it. It's hilarious!!!! KELLI: I hope you and Elizabeth feel better soon. Everyone have a great weekend and give those toddlers lots of love! :-) LisaB & Max (13 months) email: lisa_lab@hotmail.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 14:37:26 (MDT)) Hooray for Friday. Becky here. First of all thanks for all the advice regarding meeting my bio mom. Tomorrow is the day. We are going to meet in Concord at a resturant. I'm pretty nervous, but I'm sure it will be fine. Thanks for all your thoughts and e-mails. I haven't posted in awhile because about couple of weeks ago I pulled my back out pretty bad. Since then I have been trying to get caught up at work, I think I finally am getting out from under the pile on my desk. Harley is doing great, still really isn't talking yet, but I keep trying to encourage him, read to him etc. He will go with me tomorrow to the meeting of the moms (me, bio-mom, and the mom that raised me.) Moriah-thanks for the great pictures. Alex is getting soooo big! Kelli-I hope you and Elizabeth feel better soon. Shelly-Thanks for the info regarding encorpresis. Crystal-We have already bought a toilet for Harley, but haven't really pressured him to sit on it. Like you we let Harley into the bathroom with us and explain what we are doing to aquaint him with the potty. So far the only interest he has in his potty is to stand on it, or to stick his foot in it. I know we have a lot of time before we have to really tackle training, but I agree it is good to get him used to what a potty is. Megan-Yes we love you! I don't have any advice regarding the bumping head thing. It seems every time one of Harley's bruises heal he gets another boo boo. Sorry. Cynthia-Hello fellow lurker. I too am guilty of reading & not posting. I am going to try to get better now that I'm all caught up. Louise-I am sorry to hear about your uncle. Mary-I have heard that Dove soap is great for diaper rash. Leanne-Twins Yikes! I am sorry that all your girls are sick. Darleen-Welcome, they do grow up so fast. LisaMarie-Welcome, I live in Fairfield, CA. Patty-I am with you sister regarding reading other boards. I just don't understand how they work. Sarah W-The pumpkin hunting trip sounds like fun. Kahne-Thank you for the e-mail regarding my bio mom. It really helped me make my decision. Good luck on your mid-terms. Katy-Have you tried diaper pins? Like you use for cloth diapers? Maybe that will keep the diaper on. Beth-I love the baby chicken idea. It is so original. My friend loaned me an adorable tiger costume that she had sewn. Harley is going to be a tiger for Halloween. Helen-Harley and I always take baths and showers together too. He loves it. Sarah-I didn't plan on having Harley either but I agree it was the best thing that ever happened to me. Ain't love grand? Juliane-Colten sounds so cute sticking out his tounge. Patty-Harley also vacums with his popper. I hope you are feeling better soon. Lisa B-I'm glad the bathing is going better. Birdie-Congrats on Noah's walking! Look out world, here he comes! Julianne-Colten sounds so cute raking leaves with his popper. Diane-Thanksgiving dinner sounds yum yum yummy. Shelly-Re: ideas for haunted house. I remember when I was a kid going to one at our church. They had a room that was very dark and they put spagetti in a bowl with some grapes and had us put our hands in the bowl and said it was guts and eyeballs. I guess this would only be a good game for the older kids. Younger kids how about apple bobbing? Rita-Congrats on fully mobile Amy. I'm really sorry I couldn't meet you at the Rin Faire because of my back, but we will definately have to get together soon. Judy-I hope Elijah's ear infection gets better sonn. Sarah & Hannah-Congrats on Hannah's first steps. Thanks for missing me. Joy-I hope Josh's surgery went well. Stacey-Congrats on your new baby girl. Everyone else-Hi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Well I guess that's about it for now. Wish me luck tomorrow. I will let you know how the meeting with bio mom goes. I'm really nervous and I don't know why? Love you ladies, take care. Becky & Harley email: bsmisek@scfair.org Friday, October 15, 1999 at 16:31:37 (MDT)) Hi everyone. TGIF!! Whew, I know it was only a four day work week, but it sure felt like a full one. I don't think I mentioned last time that I work in childcare as a teacher. Needless to say many days I come home tired! Thank goodness I was blessed with a very happy little girl. She's such a pleasure to come home to. Now that I'm expecting again, it is hard to get enough rest though. Some days I'll even have a nap on my lunch in the staff room. All in all I love what I do, and actually enjoy going to work. I guess it makes me feel valuable outside of my home and family, not to mention that I enjoy the interaction with the other teachers and parents. I did actually seriously think about staying at home and taking in a few other children, but I found it very isolating being at home on my own. And now that I'm so used to working in a team atmosphere I think I would find it hard to lose that. Anyway, I didn't mean to spend so much time talking about myself. I'm glad to hear that mast of you are doing so well. Louise: I'm very sorry to hear about your uncle. At least he will have some peace now. Chandi: I remember when Beth was small reading that they encouraged some parents to let their children nap in a quiet area that wasn't where they slept at night. maybe turn off the T.V. and let him lie on the couch. Or put a couple of blankets or a small mat on the floor in a quiet area. Is it reakky important that he sleep in his bed, or that he sleeps? I guess that depends on whether or not he gets up and wanders around. If that's the case you'll want him in a room where you can close the door. Two other things you may want to try,1- first try doing exactly the same routine that you do with him before bed. Second if that isn't the case try to do something to make nap time a special time, music, a book, a special sleep toy. Anyway whatever you try you should give each new thing afew days, because most children will rebel against any change , even if it's a good change. Cynthia& Adam: I'm in the west end, South barhaven. I wrote much at the begining that now I forget the rest of you that I was going to respond to. Maybe I'll have time to write some more later. Beth just went to bed for the night, and now is my time to get a few things done and the have some time to myself. Bye for now. Lisamarie & Elisabeth Friday, October 15, 1999 at 19:44:41 (MDT)) Hi everyone!! Angel had her mmr needle with no problems so far!(knock on wood). She is 32 inches tall and weighs 22 pounds. A question for you all what is your child's bedtime just curious??? Okay personals Louise- sorry to hear about your uncle. I would love to have pics of your sweeties too so I can put a face to a name. Mary C.- Angel had a really bad diaper rash about two weeks ago and we thought it was just teething but it wouldnt go away. So we talked to the pharmacist and he said it might be a fungal diaper rash so he gave us a cream for it . Well to make a long story short it really worked well and she has nothing now again, thank god because it looked so sore I really felt for her! He also said it could be a yeast infection but the cream would work on both. Patty: i hear you about bedtime and hubbie interrupting it sometimes my hubbie works late and if i am in the middle of putting her to bed and he comes home she wants to stay up and see him and sometimes make it a little rougher to put her down. Cynthia: Not too sure about Angel either with Halloween we will see how she is. I was laughing at your story about the diaper. I know when it was hot and I put Angel to bed with just a diaper a few mornings I would go in and she would be buck naked and I would ask "where is your diaper", she would either point at it or pick it up and smile of course. I have heard about using masking tape. Lisa B.- good for Max getting better with the baths!! Leanne- I hear you about twins they run in both my family and my husbands family so you never know. I have a little one now but who knows what might happen next time. I asked the midwife right away do you hear two heartbeats or one. She said just one ! Kelli- hope Elizabeth gets better Becky-good luck with your reunion Shelley- Halloween ideas at family.go.com might find some ideas there. Lisa Marie- I am a daycare worker too! I am working supply right now so I can be home too with my little one. I love working too!!! Chandi- what about trying some music or giving some books or toys to distract. I tried this with Angel and it seems to work well. I tell her to read till she feels like sleeping takes some pressure off and gives them something to do if they are not tired!Let me know how it goes. Sorry this was so long but I didnt want to leave anyone out. Have a great weekend! Diane and Angel- 15 months Diane Morgan email: jadimorgan@home.com Friday, October 15, 1999 at 21:30:11 (MDT)) Hi, It's Lisamarie again. I was just about to pack it in for the night and remembered one of the things I had wanted to mention before. Kelli & Elizabeth: Beth has had a few colds in her short 14 months, and one thing we were told was not to give her anything to stop the coughing. Except at night if she's not sleeping well. The coughing is actually a good thing because it keeps the congestion moving, otherwise it may settle in their chest. You may want to check with your own doctor again of course, but ours explained to us that especially with children that are too young to bring up the congestion and get rid of it when they cough, you don't want to suppress the coughing too much. Now when Beth gets bad with a cold, we only give her cough syrup at night, so that we can all get a little sleep. Anyway, it's food for thought. Lisamaie & Eliabeth Friday, October 15, 1999 at 21:35:43 (MDT)) Crystal and Darrel here. I'm not feeling the greatest right now. I think it's my allergies. Ragweed has been high here in Texas this year. If I'm still sick after the pollen goes down, I'm definitely going to the dr. Sometimes when I get allergy problems, they can be so bad that I can't tell if it's bronchitis or allergies. I have always gotten bronchitis every two or three years since I was a child. And I'm due for bronchitis this year. I've been coughing my brains out the past two weeks, so I know it's not a cold. I don't always run a fever with bronchitis, so it can bee tricky. It's not the flu because I never get it, with or without the shot. Even the flu changes every year, I think I may have natural immunity to it. Now, if they had a bronchitis vaccine (even though it's bacterial), I'd take it in a heartbeat. It beats taking penicillin every two or three years for the rest of my life. Once they get the vaccine for ear infections approved, I'll gladly take that too. I still get them at almost 21 years old. Bye-bye amoxicellin. I'm glad that Darrel doesn't have my tendancy towards ear infections. He's only had two in the 13 1/2 months he's been alive. I had them often enough to affect my hearing and speach. Until I was in high school, I had to have speech therapy and was a very loud talker. Everyone thought I was yelling, but I that I was talking at a normal volume, even when teachers and speech therapists tried to record my voice to try to show me how loud I was taking. Fortunately, I don't get ear infections as often as I used to. I only get them three or four times a year now. I usually get them when my allergies flare up too bad. Unfortunately, Darrel has inherited my tendancy towards allergies. But it's hard for him to not inherit it. Dh also gets allergies, and his mom and my dad are also allergic. But I did find one thing that helps get me through the allergy season-water. Lots of water helps to thin out the phlegm and makes it easier to cough up. When my allergies flare up, I refuse to have any dairy. It makes it worse because I'm allergic to dairy products as well. That allergy isn't very severe and I can still have a limited quantity of dairy. But dairy, especially milk gags me trying to go down because it doesn't go down as smooth as other liquids. As it is, I tend to cough so hard that I come close to vomitting. Milk makdes my vomit during allergy season. When I start whezzing, I drink 10-20 oz. of water, soda, or tea, and I'm able to cough up enough phlegm to stop wheezing. It works with sinus problems as well. I get sinus problems every spring. Lots of water during the day keepsme from gagging on the post nasal drip, and Tylenol Sinus for Sinus headaches and to sleep at night. During the fall with my bronchial allergies, I tend to have mild asthma attacks as well. Idon't use an inhaler for my asthma. Ibreath over ice and drink water during my asthma attacks. Fortunately, I've gone four years without having an attack. But I also moved further down South four years ago when the attacks stopped. I pry that Darrel never has asthma. When I had my first few attacks before I found out that it's asthma, I was so scared and though I was going to die because I felt like I couldn't breath and I didn't know what to do. The worse part about it is that my parents didn't believe me. They said that it was just bronchitis. I can breath just fine when I get bronchitis. Well, maybe not just fine, but I don't have periods in which I feel like my chest tightens up and I can't breath and black out, nearly passing out from lack of oxygen. That's not bronchitis. By my sophmore year in high school, I had had bronchitis enough to know when I got it. Later that year, my parents took me to the dr., and I did have bronchits, but the attacks didn't stop when the bronchitis went away. I was fortunate, though, to have a teacher who had asthma and was able to help me. She taught me to breath over ice. She taught me to breath in through my nose and out through my mouth over ice when I have my asthma attacks. We moved at the end of my sophmore year, and I quit having asthma attacks. My dad thinks that it may have been dogwood trees causing the reaction because that's one thing they had there that we have left behind. Sorry for the novel, but I hope this helps anyone who's having problems with allergies and sinuses. I'll talk somer later. Crystal and Darrel !3 1/2 months email: cjeanmurphy@yahoo.com Saturday, October 16, 1999 at 09:40:57 (MDT)) Hi mommies. I am so glad it's slow on weekends so I can catch up if I miss a day during the week. We took Jarin to the doctor yesterday just to make sure he was ok since he was still coughing and having a runny nose. She told us he has a BAD ear infection in both ears and another sore throat. He is also wheezing, so we now have to give him breathing treatments four times a day for the next ten days. Then, on Monday, we have to see an ear specialist since he has had so many ear infections. All this has made me a little nervous since Jaime has asthma and also had to have tubes in her ears twice when she was little. I hope this is just a bad season and after the ten days, Jarin is ok. My voice is starting to come back, but I still feel really run down. Then, as if that wasn't enough, at 4AM on Friday we got a phone call from FIL. My MIL had just had a heart attack. It was mild and they are pretty sure everything is ok. She was asking for her lipstick and hair brush, so I figure that has to be a good sign. She has a heart catheterization on Monday to check for additional blockage. If everything's ok, she gets to go home then. I also see the TMJ specialist on Monday. There - don't you all feel better about your lives right now? LOL. Really, we are all doing better now, so things are ok. **Louise: Glad to see you back, but sorry to hear about your Uncle. James sounds too cute rubbing his sock on the fireplace! =) Yes, I think our monsters would have lots of fun together. I can justimagine the things they could teach each other. heehee **Julianne: The train ride sounds like lots of fun. Hope Colton enjoys it. I hope you get a chance to talk to the director so you can feel better about your daycare. I agree - it sucks having to leave our babies, and I only have to do it from 8-1. Glad to hear the triplets are doing well and that your friend has lots of help. **Cynthia: Glad to see you back after so long! That's great that Adam is doing so well. I was LOL at him peeing through the rails and then sleeping semi naked. What a riot. Can you imagine if you had had that on video? Ok, 22 months was for a girl, it was during the summer, and DD has always been one to want to learn things quickly, so don't give me too much credit. LOL. **Megan: Of course we still love you! Glad to hear that Ben is ok and is being a monkey just like the rest of our toddlers. Jarin also bumps his head ALL the time. Every time I turn around, he hurts himself on something. I just always comfort him and then he gets down and runs into something else. LOL. Jarin also says "Dat" to everything. It cracks me up. **LisaB: UGH - I know just how you felt throwing out all that breast milk. Sickening! **Shelly: I feel for you on the preteen thing, girl. My DD is 16 and I swear one of us may not live until she's 20. LOL. Too cute about Riley grunting and then flushing the toilet. =) **Kelli: Hope you and Elizabeth feel better soon. Have you tried Dimetapp? It always works really great for Jarin's stuffy nose and our doctors are always recommending it. **MaryC: Hope that Elijah's rash is better soon and some of those ideas help. **Becky: Hey, girl! Glad to see you back too! I am thinking of you as today is the day you are meeting your biological mom. I hope everything goes really great. I also hope your back is better soon. Glad to hear that Harley is doing well. Isn't it too cute when they are vacuuming with those poppers? I went to one of those nursing boards and thought I had it figured out. Wrong! Glad to hear i'm not the only "illiterate" one. LOL **Diane: Jarin usually goes to bed between 9:30-10 during the week and later on weekends. Interrupting bedtimes - it was DD, not DH, but UGH - that is so frustrating!!! **Crystal: Hope you are feeling better. I have sinus problems every year around this time and then I end up with this throat stuff. **Jarin's napping now, so I have to get ready for church. Yes, I have to take him again this week. Always proves interesting. LOL. Have a great weekend everyone. Patty and Jarin 13 1/2 months email: tematheny@ctlnet.com Saturday, October 16, 1999 at 15:37:45 (MDT)) |