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| Chasing the cats - she would get close and lift the front tire then 'I squish Orangie mommy!' |
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| She loves the bike. Oh, and look close. Closer! That's a ponytail! Finally hair is long enough. |
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| Some sort of organization going on here. |
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Thursday, February 27, 2014
Mud Puddles
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
February Pics and a Romantic Valentine's Day
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| "Look, I sit up here! I crazy!" She loves emptying the pantry. No wonder why I'm always out of mac and cheese. |
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| Eating a red orange. I think she learned this from the boys. |
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| Valentine's Day party. Good luck getting one kid to look at the camera! |
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| She fell asleep playing with daddy's phone |
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| Pippy and Grammie - She still loves the flip flops she has outgrown. |
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| Pippy really liked snuggling with Grandpa this time. |
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| The two nicest goons. |
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| Oh, and we are expecting again! Sorry I don't have any cutsie creative 'baby reveal.' But here is the proof. The newbie has been named 'The Karate Kid.' If you turn the picture 45 degrees to the left, the baby is squatting with the hand in a fist to our left punching me. No joke. If this were a video you would see the fist punching back and forth between it's chin and the edge of the sack or whatever it is sitting in. I bet this baby will be calm and sleep all day. |
Monday, February 17, 2014
Dr. Spock on Sunshine, Pacifiers and Feelings
Well, Dr. Spock, you've been a decent companion these last few weeks. You've stuck with me through the flood of 2014, an epic ski weekend, and a trip to the beach.
Just kidding. I guess it was more like 5 trips to the grocery store, 15 loads of laundry, and a visit from the in-laws.
If you missed out last time, I have been reading Dr. Spock's The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care. It continues to amuse and befuddle me. It causes me to overuse the phrase, "In our parents' generation..." occasionally with some eye rolling.
I think I'm pretty good at getting Penelope outdoors to play in the sunshine and fresh air. However, Dr. Spock recommends babies over 10 pounds be outside for 2 to 3 hours a day, as long it's above freezing and not bitter winds. Three hours at 35 degrees and I would shrivel up and die! After being boggled by that, I read that Dr. Spock "wouldn't keep him out all by himself for more than an hour when he is awake." So I can leave my child unattended outside for an hour while I go inside and take a nap?! This is sounding a little more appealing.
One benefit to living in the mid 20th century would be putting your baby to sleep on their stomach, and not feeling like you were going to kill your baby. SIDS is not mentioned by Dr. Spock. However, the baby is likely shivering to hard to stop breathing...parents are supposed to let the nursery temperature fall to 60 degrees at night. Brr.
The use of the pacifier was common then, but "if you are disgusted by the appearance of a pacifier in a baby's or child's mouth, you'd better not use one; it wouldn't be good for you or your feelings for the child." I had to chuckle at this. They even talked about feelings back then!
Oh dear. On to potty training. Surprisingly the main advice from Dr. Spock matches most of the mainstream advice given today - when your child shows signs of being ready, they will train easily. However, the timing is quite different. 'Early' developers begin potty training between 7 and 12 months, and 'late' between 18 and 24 months (with only occasional accidents between two and three.) I find the age today of potty training varies more, with many children still in diapers until 3 or 4, and nobody really concerned by it. (Except a few great grandmas!)
But I suppose if you are harboring bad 'feelings' toward your child, you better get potty training.
Just kidding. I guess it was more like 5 trips to the grocery store, 15 loads of laundry, and a visit from the in-laws.
If you missed out last time, I have been reading Dr. Spock's The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care. It continues to amuse and befuddle me. It causes me to overuse the phrase, "In our parents' generation..." occasionally with some eye rolling.
I think I'm pretty good at getting Penelope outdoors to play in the sunshine and fresh air. However, Dr. Spock recommends babies over 10 pounds be outside for 2 to 3 hours a day, as long it's above freezing and not bitter winds. Three hours at 35 degrees and I would shrivel up and die! After being boggled by that, I read that Dr. Spock "wouldn't keep him out all by himself for more than an hour when he is awake." So I can leave my child unattended outside for an hour while I go inside and take a nap?! This is sounding a little more appealing.
One benefit to living in the mid 20th century would be putting your baby to sleep on their stomach, and not feeling like you were going to kill your baby. SIDS is not mentioned by Dr. Spock. However, the baby is likely shivering to hard to stop breathing...parents are supposed to let the nursery temperature fall to 60 degrees at night. Brr.
The use of the pacifier was common then, but "if you are disgusted by the appearance of a pacifier in a baby's or child's mouth, you'd better not use one; it wouldn't be good for you or your feelings for the child." I had to chuckle at this. They even talked about feelings back then!
Oh dear. On to potty training. Surprisingly the main advice from Dr. Spock matches most of the mainstream advice given today - when your child shows signs of being ready, they will train easily. However, the timing is quite different. 'Early' developers begin potty training between 7 and 12 months, and 'late' between 18 and 24 months (with only occasional accidents between two and three.) I find the age today of potty training varies more, with many children still in diapers until 3 or 4, and nobody really concerned by it. (Except a few great grandmas!)
But I suppose if you are harboring bad 'feelings' toward your child, you better get potty training.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
GooMorning!
Pippy likes mornings. So do I, starting about a half hour after my eyes are pried open by a two-year-old. On the weekends, a morning goes like this.
Pip wakes up in our bed or crawls into it and does a little happy bounce:
"Daddy, where [your] glasses?"
Daddy manages to reach glasses and put them on.
"Daddy, where pants? Get clothes? Get dressed?
Eventually Daddy gets dressed and the two get out of bed.
"Kitties want to come in!!"
They let the kitties inside.
"GooMorning Orangie! GooMorning Ruby! Kitty needs water."
Kitties are pampered/tormented and taken care of.
"Daddy make coffee?"
Eventually coffee is made.
"Pippy need some COFFEE!!!"
Yep, because she needs so much help waking up in the morning.
------
For living over a thousand miles from family, Penelope got to see more than her usual quota of family over the holidays. She is still in withdrawel. Every day the conversation varies, but it goes something like this:
"Where Danny? Where Cheska?"
Me: "They are in Wyoming."
"Where Joanna?" (She says Joanna so cutely, like Jo-OONNa) "Talk to Joanna on the phone?"
"Where Grama?"
Me: "Grama's at her house."
"Grama come 'night." She says firmly, as if she will just come back in the evening like when Daddy comes home from work. I try to tell her that we will see Grama sometime in the future, and she just looks sad and says, "Grama hugs."
One morning Wayne was sleeping in the guest bedroom and Penelope heard a noise from the room. She got the biggest eyes and looked at me with a smile, "GRAMA!!!" Poor Pippy.
Pip wakes up in our bed or crawls into it and does a little happy bounce:
"Daddy, where [your] glasses?"
Daddy manages to reach glasses and put them on.
"Daddy, where pants? Get clothes? Get dressed?
Eventually Daddy gets dressed and the two get out of bed.
"Kitties want to come in!!"
They let the kitties inside.
"GooMorning Orangie! GooMorning Ruby! Kitty needs water."
Kitties are pampered/tormented and taken care of.
"Daddy make coffee?"
Eventually coffee is made.
"Pippy need some COFFEE!!!"
Yep, because she needs so much help waking up in the morning.
------
For living over a thousand miles from family, Penelope got to see more than her usual quota of family over the holidays. She is still in withdrawel. Every day the conversation varies, but it goes something like this:
"Where Danny? Where Cheska?"
Me: "They are in Wyoming."
"Where Joanna?" (She says Joanna so cutely, like Jo-OONNa) "Talk to Joanna on the phone?"
"Where Grama?"
Me: "Grama's at her house."
"Grama come 'night." She says firmly, as if she will just come back in the evening like when Daddy comes home from work. I try to tell her that we will see Grama sometime in the future, and she just looks sad and says, "Grama hugs."
One morning Wayne was sleeping in the guest bedroom and Penelope heard a noise from the room. She got the biggest eyes and looked at me with a smile, "GRAMA!!!" Poor Pippy.
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| Somehow she is able to leave the 'coffee' on the soft chair and get up without it spilling. |
Monday, January 27, 2014
The Times Have Changed
Oh Dr. Spock, I'm glad I didn't live in your day. I kind of like Google and bookstores with endless books on every aspect of babies.
I have been intrigued by reading some of The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, the main and 'revolutionary' childcare guide in the post-WW2 era, written by Dr. Benjamin Spock. The book was apparently thought of as a better and 'kinder' guide to babies and children, although books geared toward child rearing were few in those days. Some of you may have used this guide yourselves, so some of his advice may not come as a shock to you. However, as a mother of today's age, I find some that is contrary to my own instincts, and downright ludicrous compared to many of the en vogue practices of today's age. Much of it, though, is quite amusing.
Dr. Spock suggests that the baby's wardrobe consist of 3-6 shirts, 3-6 nightgowns, a sweater or two, and hats (all 1-year size). Socks are not needed for several months. A typical guide today would include 4-6 onesies, 4-6 playsuits, 2-4 shirts, 2-4 pants, 2-3 sweaters, 3-4 pajamas, 2 sleepsacks, 2-4 socks, 2 mittens, 2-3 hats, and 1 sunhat. Size newborn of course.
I would assume that in Dr. Spock's day they didn't have a new clothing size every three months, but one size for a whole year? I guess it would be frugal, but girls, you missed out on a lot of shopping! No wonder I often hear from older women, "They make such cute clothes for babies nowadays..."
As a side note, I would like to point out that my mother and aunt never read and followed the no-sock advice. They would both go into near hysterics if Penelope ever was seen without socks. In a warm house, they were always concerned that she would instantly 'catch cold' without having socks on.
Some of the first few things Dr. Spock says about the actual baby, are "Don't be afraid of him," and that he is "usually disappointing looking" after birth. How encouraging! (The baby is always referred to as a male.)
Dr. Spock did encourage breastfeeding, and told women that it didn't mean that they would 'lose their figure,' and they could still lead a normal life while doing so! (However, if a nursing mother became 'nervously upset,' milk production can dwindle. Nervously upset, huh?
Apparently in 1950 you didn't run to the store for formula. You...ahem....made it. A typical recipe was 10 ounces of evaporated milk, 20 ounces of water, and 2 tablespoons of corn syrup for a newborn for one day. CORN SYRUP!!! The biggest evil by today's health standards. That's 32 grams of sugar, nearly the recommended daily value for an ADULT!
I think I need a few minutes to mull that over. You never did this to me, RIGHT, MOM?!?!
To be continued....I've got about 490 more pages to read before knowing how to raise a child.
I have been intrigued by reading some of The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, the main and 'revolutionary' childcare guide in the post-WW2 era, written by Dr. Benjamin Spock. The book was apparently thought of as a better and 'kinder' guide to babies and children, although books geared toward child rearing were few in those days. Some of you may have used this guide yourselves, so some of his advice may not come as a shock to you. However, as a mother of today's age, I find some that is contrary to my own instincts, and downright ludicrous compared to many of the en vogue practices of today's age. Much of it, though, is quite amusing.
Dr. Spock suggests that the baby's wardrobe consist of 3-6 shirts, 3-6 nightgowns, a sweater or two, and hats (all 1-year size). Socks are not needed for several months. A typical guide today would include 4-6 onesies, 4-6 playsuits, 2-4 shirts, 2-4 pants, 2-3 sweaters, 3-4 pajamas, 2 sleepsacks, 2-4 socks, 2 mittens, 2-3 hats, and 1 sunhat. Size newborn of course.
I would assume that in Dr. Spock's day they didn't have a new clothing size every three months, but one size for a whole year? I guess it would be frugal, but girls, you missed out on a lot of shopping! No wonder I often hear from older women, "They make such cute clothes for babies nowadays..."
As a side note, I would like to point out that my mother and aunt never read and followed the no-sock advice. They would both go into near hysterics if Penelope ever was seen without socks. In a warm house, they were always concerned that she would instantly 'catch cold' without having socks on.
Some of the first few things Dr. Spock says about the actual baby, are "Don't be afraid of him," and that he is "usually disappointing looking" after birth. How encouraging! (The baby is always referred to as a male.)
Dr. Spock did encourage breastfeeding, and told women that it didn't mean that they would 'lose their figure,' and they could still lead a normal life while doing so! (However, if a nursing mother became 'nervously upset,' milk production can dwindle. Nervously upset, huh?
Apparently in 1950 you didn't run to the store for formula. You...ahem....made it. A typical recipe was 10 ounces of evaporated milk, 20 ounces of water, and 2 tablespoons of corn syrup for a newborn for one day. CORN SYRUP!!! The biggest evil by today's health standards. That's 32 grams of sugar, nearly the recommended daily value for an ADULT!
I think I need a few minutes to mull that over. You never did this to me, RIGHT, MOM?!?!
To be continued....I've got about 490 more pages to read before knowing how to raise a child.
Monday, January 20, 2014
Friday, January 10, 2014
Uncles are so much fun
....and have so much energy!
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| Penelope and Uncle Danny had lots of fun. |
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| Cheska would only let Danny have popcorn if he caught it in his mouth. These two were entertaining. |
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| Every day P piles books on this chair, usually getting mad and needing help when they fall over. Then she sits there and looks through each book. Pretty cute. And genius. |
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| She likes to carry the violin and sing - "Sing! YAYA YA YAA" |
Monday, December 30, 2013
12-30
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| Playing a game with Danny and Chesca |
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| Pippy Slurping every drop of a grapefruit |
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| Mom and Abigail in hysterics right before they left. If you want to know why ask them:) |
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| Who knew markers were for your face? |
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| If Danny is taking a nap it must be cool. |
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| Typing |
Friday, December 27, 2013
Christmas 2014
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| New Year's Eve breakfast with my Aunt Linda and Uncle Walter |
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| Penelope got the sniffles, but thought it was really fun to get tissues from Walter |
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| Pippy bothered Abigail to no end |
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| Talking on the phone |
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| Our Christmas Dinner appetizer - Baked Camembert. Penelope preferred leftover chicken breast and drummie - which she ate nearly all of! |
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| When you're buddies, you fold your legs the same way. |
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| Abs with the Camembert |
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Pip and Great Grandpa
Great Grandpa Jess with his youngest grandchild. My grandpa is 89 years young and spent 30 hours on a train to come and see us!
No....neither of them were having fun!
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