Friends, after only one day, I'm off the wagon. Yesterday afternoon saw one very small, perhaps accidental success. The rest of the day was a series of wet underpants and small puddles. This kid is a camel. I plied him with juice all day and it never reappeared. That makes toilet training a bit challenging. Even this morning his diaper did not reflect the amount of liquid he consumed yesterday.
Baffling.
I was forced to take some social time for myself this morning at Starbucks, mainly for my own sanity. There is only so many times I can sing the pee-pee song without losing my shit.
After Starbucks, it was off to Costco to return two bathing suits for Emily for a bigger size. I had to do it today before they sold out because kids' Speedo suits at $11.99 won't last long.
So now we're home, diaper still on, Dora on the iPad. I hope the afternoon will produce some successes. If so, you're sure to hear about it here.
Update: Lots of pee today. All in diapers except for one prolific pee in the underpants. However... a realization! Henry seems to have been routinely dehydrated, which explains why he didn't pee much yesterday. He drank all that juice, didn't pee much, but today, had a much easier time with pooping than he has in.... months. Oh my. Feeling like a bad mother. Although, I offer him drink a lot but the guy doesn't want them unless it's juice. He'd rather drink nothing than have to suck back water during the day.
Showing posts with label Henry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Henry. Show all posts
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Wednesday, January 09, 2013
And now to resume the toilet talk...
It seems that I've largely abandoned this space, my personal space on the massive landscape that is the World Wide Web. I've been thinking more and more lately about how much I miss spending time here, crafting my words, sharing our stories and connecting with people who find their way here. I've also given time to trying to figure out why I have found it so hard in the last year, and especially since July 24, the date of my last post, to make time for my blog.
There has been one major addition to my life in the last year: Girl Guides of Canada.
The reality is that running two Girl Guide units has dominated my free time in the evenings when I normally spend a little bit of time here. I love my work with Girl Guides and that won't change. Nor will the amount of time I devote to it.
And, with my current attempts to get back into paid employment with the government, it isn't likely that more free time is going to open up any time soon.
And so, while it may not be of interest to current readers (if there are any current readers left?), I'm going to change my use of this space somewhat and use it to share meeting ideas, craft ideas, issues and celebrations about my Girl Guide units. I will still use it as my personal blog. it won't entirely be Girl Guide-related but since that is a big part of my life, it only makes sense that it becomes more of a feature on the blog. And if it means that I get back to writing more often, then it's the right answer.
But for now, the blog, at least for this week, is going back to its roots: poop talk! Bum talk! Toilet training talk!
Both of my girls played starring roles here during their toilet training adventures. And it seems only fair that Henry's foray into all things underpants (his favourite word for underwear) and toilet is documented as well. Not just for posterity and your enjoyment, but for my own psychological health.
As you may recall, I hate toilet training. I've said it before and I'll say it again: if there is one part of parenting I'd like to be able to hire out, it would be this part. I'll take barf, discipline, sleeplessness, illness over toilet training anyday. I. HATE. IT.
Maybe that's why we generally suck at it over here. Although Hope's experience was way better than Emily's and maybe that means that Henry's will be even better.
All I really know is that I'm likely to be washing a lot of underpants today.
Today is Day 1 and currently Henry is still sitting on the couch watching Grover in his dinosaur jammies and a fully stocked diaper. My resolve is still building. I still need a shower. Although maybe it would be wise to delay that until I really need it. Right now I'm only mildly dirty. Just wait.
And so, you can expect updates today. Hopefully many positive ones. Probably many poopy ones. Although, given this guy's propensity for being backed up, it may be all pee. I think I'll be considering myself blessed that he can't produce the deuce without a lot of grunting and red-facedness.
See? Already starting on the poop talk and I haven't even pulled out the Spiderman underpants yet. Oh, this day is going to be good. Aren't you glad I'm back?
There has been one major addition to my life in the last year: Girl Guides of Canada.
The reality is that running two Girl Guide units has dominated my free time in the evenings when I normally spend a little bit of time here. I love my work with Girl Guides and that won't change. Nor will the amount of time I devote to it.
And, with my current attempts to get back into paid employment with the government, it isn't likely that more free time is going to open up any time soon.
And so, while it may not be of interest to current readers (if there are any current readers left?), I'm going to change my use of this space somewhat and use it to share meeting ideas, craft ideas, issues and celebrations about my Girl Guide units. I will still use it as my personal blog. it won't entirely be Girl Guide-related but since that is a big part of my life, it only makes sense that it becomes more of a feature on the blog. And if it means that I get back to writing more often, then it's the right answer.
But for now, the blog, at least for this week, is going back to its roots: poop talk! Bum talk! Toilet training talk!
Both of my girls played starring roles here during their toilet training adventures. And it seems only fair that Henry's foray into all things underpants (his favourite word for underwear) and toilet is documented as well. Not just for posterity and your enjoyment, but for my own psychological health.
As you may recall, I hate toilet training. I've said it before and I'll say it again: if there is one part of parenting I'd like to be able to hire out, it would be this part. I'll take barf, discipline, sleeplessness, illness over toilet training anyday. I. HATE. IT.
Maybe that's why we generally suck at it over here. Although Hope's experience was way better than Emily's and maybe that means that Henry's will be even better.
All I really know is that I'm likely to be washing a lot of underpants today.
Today is Day 1 and currently Henry is still sitting on the couch watching Grover in his dinosaur jammies and a fully stocked diaper. My resolve is still building. I still need a shower. Although maybe it would be wise to delay that until I really need it. Right now I'm only mildly dirty. Just wait.
 |
| Feeling ready for those underpants! All positive and full of smiles. Just wait..... |
And so, you can expect updates today. Hopefully many positive ones. Probably many poopy ones. Although, given this guy's propensity for being backed up, it may be all pee. I think I'll be considering myself blessed that he can't produce the deuce without a lot of grunting and red-facedness.
See? Already starting on the poop talk and I haven't even pulled out the Spiderman underpants yet. Oh, this day is going to be good. Aren't you glad I'm back?
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
Pass the Lysol
What a go these last two weeks have been. I'd love a do-over with everyone healthy and happy. But one thing two weeks like this gets you is a renewed thankfulness for health and happiness.
Almost two weeks ago, Henry came down with the runny nose and cough that the girls had had but for Henry it turned worse quickly. By Thursday I realized that this was more than your run-of-the-mill cold and took him in to the doctor who told me he had RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and the normal treatment for RSV is a trip to CHEO (our children's hospital). But she thought he was "just on the cusp" of having to go in and we should try and treat him at home with the steroids but be prepared to go to the hospital in the night if required. Thankfully we made it through that night at home, with lots of steam and steroids and Advil. The next few days were a constant stream of crying, nursing, whining, sleeping, coughing and cuddling. And Dora's Christmas Special. Know around here as "Dora Ho"... Henry's term, not mine. Honestly, if it wasn't for Dora Ho, I don't know how we would have survived those few days. It was the only thing other than nursing that stopped him from crying and the only thing that gave me a laugh during those few days.
It was more than a week until he was back to himself. In fact, yesterday was the first day that I would say he was totally back to himself. He actually ate real food - he didn't eat anything but breast milk and apple cider for an entire week (he's looking a little skinny now compared to his previously chubby self).
And now we deal with the clean-up as it were: back to night-weaning (he was fully night-weaned before the RSV), to getting him off the whiny train, and back to better eating habits.
In the midst of all this, I succumbed to a cold (my first in about two years), we started Emily on a gluten-free diet (seems she has inherited my sensitivities) and John was down with a cold. I won't use the MAN COLD term here in case he's still sensitive about it. Oops, already done. Sorry, J!
All this to say, I am so thankful now for good health, happy kids (Emily is still struggling with having to give up some of her favourite things but she's getting better... more on that in a future post) and the time to start to clean the house after all this turmoil. Having a toddler on top of you most of the time means that the house is sorely neglected... more so than usual, even. I plan to Lysol the house top to bottom.
Thank goodness March Break is coming. I really need a break from running around to activities, school projects... and the constant onslaught of germs.
Almost two weeks ago, Henry came down with the runny nose and cough that the girls had had but for Henry it turned worse quickly. By Thursday I realized that this was more than your run-of-the-mill cold and took him in to the doctor who told me he had RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and the normal treatment for RSV is a trip to CHEO (our children's hospital). But she thought he was "just on the cusp" of having to go in and we should try and treat him at home with the steroids but be prepared to go to the hospital in the night if required. Thankfully we made it through that night at home, with lots of steam and steroids and Advil. The next few days were a constant stream of crying, nursing, whining, sleeping, coughing and cuddling. And Dora's Christmas Special. Know around here as "Dora Ho"... Henry's term, not mine. Honestly, if it wasn't for Dora Ho, I don't know how we would have survived those few days. It was the only thing other than nursing that stopped him from crying and the only thing that gave me a laugh during those few days.
It was more than a week until he was back to himself. In fact, yesterday was the first day that I would say he was totally back to himself. He actually ate real food - he didn't eat anything but breast milk and apple cider for an entire week (he's looking a little skinny now compared to his previously chubby self).
And now we deal with the clean-up as it were: back to night-weaning (he was fully night-weaned before the RSV), to getting him off the whiny train, and back to better eating habits.
In the midst of all this, I succumbed to a cold (my first in about two years), we started Emily on a gluten-free diet (seems she has inherited my sensitivities) and John was down with a cold. I won't use the MAN COLD term here in case he's still sensitive about it. Oops, already done. Sorry, J!
All this to say, I am so thankful now for good health, happy kids (Emily is still struggling with having to give up some of her favourite things but she's getting better... more on that in a future post) and the time to start to clean the house after all this turmoil. Having a toddler on top of you most of the time means that the house is sorely neglected... more so than usual, even. I plan to Lysol the house top to bottom.
Thank goodness March Break is coming. I really need a break from running around to activities, school projects... and the constant onslaught of germs.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Christmas until now: a catch-up
Once upon a time there was a blog. And the blog was happy.
But then the person who loved the blog ignored the blog and the blog was sad.
And then the same person needed the blog to build a house and to sit on its stump.
That's when things got weird.
Christmas. Beth's visit. New Years. Back to school. Brownies and Sparks starting back up. It's January 20 and almost a month (!) since I last posted. I'm not sure I've had such a long hiatus since I started blogging way back in 2006 but I'm noticing this trend among some of the blogs I follow. Maybe we all just need a break from ourselves.
However I still need to preserve our family memories since my personal memory is abysmal and getting worse with age and the less sleep I get so here goes.
Christmas was lovely. We had Christmas morning on our own and then we bundled the herd up and headed to Pam and Jim's for a great Christmas dinner that we didn't have to cook. And Jim made awesome Pomegranate Cosmopolitans.
Here is a selection of photos from Christmas Eve and Christmas morning:
On December 29, Family Reyburn descended on our house. Beth and Kate arrived from Texas and my dad and Donna from Gravenhurst. We crammed into our wee house and no one got maimed. We went tobogganing (Kate's first time) and made snowmen and went to the Nature Museum and made necklaces at Savvy Bead Company (one of the favourite activities we did) and went to A Gym Tale and Beth and I went to Spa Nordik on the coldest day we'd had so far this winter. Next time we're taking toques to wear with our bathing suits and bath robes. We also made a huge gourmet dinner on New Years. Beth introduced me to the wonders of St. Germain Elderberry Liqueur. All in all, it was an awesome visit.
Back to the routine come January 9. And since the snow fell on Christmas Day, winter has been hitting us full force in Ottawa with temperatures each morning around minus 17. I'm ready for a thaw. The cold temperatures are giving us perfect skating conditions however so we're going skating this Sunday for the first time this year. I'm really looking forward to it, as are the girls.
Henry turned 20 months old yesterday and he really deserves a post (or several) all his own. He is everything that is perfect about this age right now. Sure, he still has the occasional grumpy day (like today and yesterday) but mostly he is crazy fun to be with. He is cute as all get out. His hair is soft like feathers and curly like Art Garfunkel's. He gives us coy looks when you ask him questions looking for a laugh. His words are coming out faster and furiouser now. He pipes in for the "HI!" part of the Dora theme song... you know in the last part: da-da-da-da-da-Dora - HI! - da-da-da-da-da-Dora - HI!. He shouts out the HI! all on his own. One of his favourite parts of the day is when I play puppets with his bear and lamb that he sleeps with. He goes to sleep giggling away. He calls out "Mama!" over and over again through the day when he wants me to see what he's doing, what's he's built, the trouble he's getting into, or if I just haven't looked at him in a while. He loves playing in the snow, which is surprising given his age. Emily and Hope didn't take to it until they were over two. He refuses to get out of his sled when I'm pulling him around in it. He is crazy-crazy about Kindermusik and starts the next level next week. His favourite characters are Dora, Barney and "Toot", aka Thomas the Tank Engine. While his allegiances definitely lie with John and me, he is totally enamoured with Hope. He calls her name throughout the day if she's home or not. Sadly for Emily, he refuses to say her name although he loves her to bits too. She's dealing with it well but would love for him to give in and say 'Mimi'. For now, it remains all about Hope. Here is Henry's cuteness at work as well as the evidence of his fondness for saying 'Hope':
There have been some great moments with Emily and Hope from the last few weeks. While Beth and Kate and my dad and Donna were here, John and I and the girls played sleepover in the master bedroom. John and I were on air mattresses while the girls stayed in their beds. John has been known to snore now and again (that's called "glossing over the truth") and Emily is a light sleeper like me. Here is the list that Emily wrote one day while we were all sharing a room:
Beth and I just about popped a gasket laughing so hard when we read this. We did our best not to let Emily know how funny we thought it was. I think we failed. This gem is going right into her memory box.
This past week at Brownies we started to teach the girls how to hand sew. They embraced it enthusiastically and Emily came home asking me to show her how to sew on the machine. Two days ago she sewed a hot pad and Hope played around with different stitches on the machine. As Emily sewed her first line of stitching on the hot pad I found myself saying: "Emily, Nana would be so proud!" and felt tears welling up in my eyes. I was surprised by how emotional I was about it. This was a direct connection to my mum and a deep connection between my mum and my girls. This weekend each girl is going to sew a skirt for the Barbies. I can't wait.
Emily had her first piano lesson on Thursday, another connection straight to Mum. For the last year, I've been teaching Emily so this was her first lesson with someone other than me. She loved every second and I was pleased to get confirmation that I've done well with her in the last year because her teacher (the wonderful Lynn) was really impressed with how much Emily already knows.
I took the girls for haircuts over the Christmas holidays and you'll note from the video above that Hope had all her locks cut off. She's now sporting an adorable short cut that I absolutely love. She's really happy with it too. Hope continues to be my even-keeled, loving, cuddling, soft-hearted, reliable, hilarious and fun-loving girl. I can now add budding reader to that list. I'm so impressed with how her reading is coming along and thrilled that she isn't struggling with it. And unlike Emily she seems to have much more patience for sounding out words and working at it until she gets it. How refreshing!
Kudos to you if you've lasted this long. I think I can count on one hand those of you who are still with me. But this gets me mostly caught up and hopefully back in the blogging saddle.
But then the person who loved the blog ignored the blog and the blog was sad.
And then the same person needed the blog to build a house and to sit on its stump.
That's when things got weird.
Christmas. Beth's visit. New Years. Back to school. Brownies and Sparks starting back up. It's January 20 and almost a month (!) since I last posted. I'm not sure I've had such a long hiatus since I started blogging way back in 2006 but I'm noticing this trend among some of the blogs I follow. Maybe we all just need a break from ourselves.
However I still need to preserve our family memories since my personal memory is abysmal and getting worse with age and the less sleep I get so here goes.
Christmas was lovely. We had Christmas morning on our own and then we bundled the herd up and headed to Pam and Jim's for a great Christmas dinner that we didn't have to cook. And Jim made awesome Pomegranate Cosmopolitans.
Here is a selection of photos from Christmas Eve and Christmas morning:
 |
| Christmas Eve dinner before we got dressed up and headed to the Christmas Eve service at church. We had our usual German dinner of sausages and sauerkraut. This year we added scalloped potatoes. And ended with the traditional boutentelle (sp?). |
 | |
| Emily begins unloading her stocking |
 |
| Happy Hope on Christmas morning |
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| As expected, Henry loved his book about buses |
 |
| After a breakfast of Chelsea buns and fruit salad, it is on to the main event. Emily was happy with her Spirograph from Santa. |
 |
| Hope opening her Barbie camper. It's seen lots of play since. |
 |
| John is befuddled by the way the firetruck was attached to the box. Hey Santa, next year take stuff out of the packaging before you wrap it, okay?! |
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| By the end of the gift unwrapping, Henry was an old pro. |
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| Beth and Kate take the GT for a run |
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| Emily, Hope, Kate and neighbour Anna pose with one of the best snowmen we've ever produced. |
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| Kate works on her creation at Savvy Bead |
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| Emily lines up her beads |
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| Hope concentrates while she strings her necklace |
Henry turned 20 months old yesterday and he really deserves a post (or several) all his own. He is everything that is perfect about this age right now. Sure, he still has the occasional grumpy day (like today and yesterday) but mostly he is crazy fun to be with. He is cute as all get out. His hair is soft like feathers and curly like Art Garfunkel's. He gives us coy looks when you ask him questions looking for a laugh. His words are coming out faster and furiouser now. He pipes in for the "HI!" part of the Dora theme song... you know in the last part: da-da-da-da-da-Dora - HI! - da-da-da-da-da-Dora - HI!. He shouts out the HI! all on his own. One of his favourite parts of the day is when I play puppets with his bear and lamb that he sleeps with. He goes to sleep giggling away. He calls out "Mama!" over and over again through the day when he wants me to see what he's doing, what's he's built, the trouble he's getting into, or if I just haven't looked at him in a while. He loves playing in the snow, which is surprising given his age. Emily and Hope didn't take to it until they were over two. He refuses to get out of his sled when I'm pulling him around in it. He is crazy-crazy about Kindermusik and starts the next level next week. His favourite characters are Dora, Barney and "Toot", aka Thomas the Tank Engine. While his allegiances definitely lie with John and me, he is totally enamoured with Hope. He calls her name throughout the day if she's home or not. Sadly for Emily, he refuses to say her name although he loves her to bits too. She's dealing with it well but would love for him to give in and say 'Mimi'. For now, it remains all about Hope. Here is Henry's cuteness at work as well as the evidence of his fondness for saying 'Hope':
There have been some great moments with Emily and Hope from the last few weeks. While Beth and Kate and my dad and Donna were here, John and I and the girls played sleepover in the master bedroom. John and I were on air mattresses while the girls stayed in their beds. John has been known to snore now and again (that's called "glossing over the truth") and Emily is a light sleeper like me. Here is the list that Emily wrote one day while we were all sharing a room:
This past week at Brownies we started to teach the girls how to hand sew. They embraced it enthusiastically and Emily came home asking me to show her how to sew on the machine. Two days ago she sewed a hot pad and Hope played around with different stitches on the machine. As Emily sewed her first line of stitching on the hot pad I found myself saying: "Emily, Nana would be so proud!" and felt tears welling up in my eyes. I was surprised by how emotional I was about it. This was a direct connection to my mum and a deep connection between my mum and my girls. This weekend each girl is going to sew a skirt for the Barbies. I can't wait.
Emily had her first piano lesson on Thursday, another connection straight to Mum. For the last year, I've been teaching Emily so this was her first lesson with someone other than me. She loved every second and I was pleased to get confirmation that I've done well with her in the last year because her teacher (the wonderful Lynn) was really impressed with how much Emily already knows.
I took the girls for haircuts over the Christmas holidays and you'll note from the video above that Hope had all her locks cut off. She's now sporting an adorable short cut that I absolutely love. She's really happy with it too. Hope continues to be my even-keeled, loving, cuddling, soft-hearted, reliable, hilarious and fun-loving girl. I can now add budding reader to that list. I'm so impressed with how her reading is coming along and thrilled that she isn't struggling with it. And unlike Emily she seems to have much more patience for sounding out words and working at it until she gets it. How refreshing!
Kudos to you if you've lasted this long. I think I can count on one hand those of you who are still with me. But this gets me mostly caught up and hopefully back in the blogging saddle.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Early mornings
I'm not naturally an early riser but kids will force you to do all kinds of things that don't come naturally.
Henry is in the habit of getting up at 6:00 am. And twice in the night, I should add (insert sympathetic awwwws here).
On a school morning this just means that I have more time to get things done before school starts. And I don't mind that at all. On a Saturday, I guess it means I can blog. Or make pancakes. Or amuse Henry (quietly) while everyone else is asleep
But this week I realised that since Henry was born, I've slept in once. ONCE. It was at the cottage this summer and it was only because I requested it and then Hope kept wandering into our room to ask me questions. And no one stopped her so I just gave up and got out of bed. So it didn't really accomplish the happy mood I was looking for.
It's getting a little a lot played. I guess since I'm the one who always gets up with him, it's become the norm around here. And sometimes when a norm is established, it's like turning a laker to change it.
On the upside, I like to watch the sunrise and see the birds arriving at the feeder and I like the quiet in the house. On the downside, it's becoming obvious that I don't have a lot that's worthwhile to say at 6:00 am.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
1 year ago: Henry's birth story in photos
It's been a year. One full, wonderful, amazing year and it seems like it was just yesterday and it seems like we've never been without him.
It's been a year and I haven't posted his birth story. I'm going to start writing it today. I still get emotional when I think about the drama of Henry's birth and maybe that's why I still haven't written it down. For now, here's a photographic look back at one year ago today (starting with what I did just before the birth started).
A trip to the salon. Good thing I did that because I wouldn't go again until 8 months later.
Preparing for the homebirth that didn't happen.
Walking to the hospital for IV #2. We didn't leave the hospital again until Henry was in our arms.
My amazing midwife, Mina, hooks up the IV for the penicillin. Dang that GBS. Gets me every time.
Getting a little help from John.
Looking a lot more chipper than I was probably feeling.
After the epidural (it ended up being the right decision as I had to push him out extremely fast to get him breathing again... 4 minutes of pushing and he was out. That's when I thanked God for the epidural).
Almost ready to push. He was actually born at 4:30 - the clock there is just before 4:00.
First photo of Henry. This part doesn't bring back great memories. He wasn't moving or breathing but they had him pink and screaming a few minutes later. The longest few minutes of our lives.
See? Pink and screaming.
First moments with Daddy.
Measuring time. I love the squishy pinkness of just-born babies.
First feeding.
It's been a year and I haven't posted his birth story. I'm going to start writing it today. I still get emotional when I think about the drama of Henry's birth and maybe that's why I still haven't written it down. For now, here's a photographic look back at one year ago today (starting with what I did just before the birth started).
A trip to the salon. Good thing I did that because I wouldn't go again until 8 months later.
Hope's graduation from preschool. I think my laughing (to the point of almost losing control of my faculties) at Hope exposing herself in a church to approximately 200 people is what caused my water to break that night.
Preparing for the homebirth that didn't happen.
Walking to the hospital for IV #2. We didn't leave the hospital again until Henry was in our arms.
My amazing midwife, Mina, hooks up the IV for the penicillin. Dang that GBS. Gets me every time.
Getting a little help from John.
Looking a lot more chipper than I was probably feeling.
After the epidural (it ended up being the right decision as I had to push him out extremely fast to get him breathing again... 4 minutes of pushing and he was out. That's when I thanked God for the epidural).
Almost ready to push. He was actually born at 4:30 - the clock there is just before 4:00. 
First photo of Henry. This part doesn't bring back great memories. He wasn't moving or breathing but they had him pink and screaming a few minutes later. The longest few minutes of our lives.
See? Pink and screaming.
And huge. 3.96 kilos. 8 lbs 11 oz.
First moments with Daddy.
Measuring time. I love the squishy pinkness of just-born babies.
First moments with Mummy. That grey hair was earned during your birth, Henry.
First moments with Aunt Sue. John's sister was there for the labour and delivery. She is massage therapist extraordinaire and was so amazing through the whole thing.
First feeding.
And ready to eat again.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
Henry 365 update
I FINALLY updated Henry 365 over on Flickr. You can click there on the sidebar. Most of you won't be interested but if you're a blood relative you might be interested.
He sure is cute, our wee man.
He sure is cute, our wee man.
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Verbal Diahrea Round 1: the Henry Edition
I set myself a goal of finishing my assignment (more on that another time) so that I would have enough time to blog tonight. There are SO MANY things I want to blog about. I feel as though I'm about to throw up incoherent words all over the screen because I just want to get my thoughts out as quickly as possible. There are some many things I haven't written about since the beginning of December: the baking business, Hope's first kindergarten concert, Emily's reading, Christmas, Henry, my class at Carleton (the aforementioned assignment) etc etc etc.
Most pressing: Henry. I haven't given an update on the wee man in a coon's age. A coon's age, I say! And he is so deserving.
The wee man turned seven months old on December 19 and here we are ten days away from him being 8 months old and narry a tooth in sight. He sure seems to be trying hard to get one through what with all the drool and chewing and intermittent screaming and grunting. Try as he might, nothing seems imminent. He is weighing in at about 25 pounds. My arms are well-sculpted to say the least. At least the left one. The right is as flabby as ever.
Henry's days go like this: wake around 7:30 or 8:00. Squeal with uncontrollable joy when I walk in the room (because he hasn't seen me in, like, two hours!). Get dressed, head towards door of his room, squirm and squeal with uncontrollable joy because he might spot one of his sisters (hopefully the one that allows him some breathing space, although the smothery one is okay too in small doses). Breakfast - normally a prune concoction in order to aid things as it were - covers face in as much food as possible. While eating breakfast, he routinely tips his head to the side (either one will do) in order to see around some invisible object in his way - extraordinarily cute. After breakfast - carpet play time also known as the time during which he is ignored so that I can eat my own breakfast, read the paper or clean up the kitchen (hah! good one... doesn't usually happen until at least 4:00 pm and where is that housekeeper I ordered!?). Soon after that, nap number one happens, preceded by a long drink at the mummy-fountain, after which I either take a quick shower or play a board game with Hope or bake with Hope or do something or other with Hope. Henry normally sleeps for two hours... I say 'normally' because the last two days he has been taking one-hour naps. Not what we're looking for. This means he has much less patience for the rest of the day for being ignored. Not so good when I have other people and things needing my attention. His afternoon is mainly a repeat of the morning including an afternoon nap but minus the breakfast. Rinse repeat is the way it goes until about supper when he gets much attention from his sisters, a full family meal followed by a bath with one of the two girls, naked playtime (if he's lucky) on the carpet of the girls' room and then bedtime around 7:30. At some point in the afternoon, while Hope and Emily are both at school, we do occasionally leave the house to do errands. That is the part of the day when senior citizens swoon over his cheeks and his name (everyone over 70 had a brother named Henry apparently) and his size. We like that part of the day mainly because we're outside of these four walls (although I do like our four walls). Henry loves errands - so much to take in and lots of chatting from me as I putter through stores or meet a friend for coffee.
In essence, I couldn't ask for an easier baby. He is sweet and loving and fun and laughs so easily and I could just eat him up. Especially his thighs. In fact, a few people could easily dine on those thighs. He has lots to go around.
Phew. Verbal diarhea Round 1 complete. Tune back here... possibly tomorrow... for the Christmas show. Eventually, hopefully by the end of this week, I'll be caught up at least as much as I can be after this much neglect.
Most pressing: Henry. I haven't given an update on the wee man in a coon's age. A coon's age, I say! And he is so deserving.
The wee man turned seven months old on December 19 and here we are ten days away from him being 8 months old and narry a tooth in sight. He sure seems to be trying hard to get one through what with all the drool and chewing and intermittent screaming and grunting. Try as he might, nothing seems imminent. He is weighing in at about 25 pounds. My arms are well-sculpted to say the least. At least the left one. The right is as flabby as ever.
Henry's days go like this: wake around 7:30 or 8:00. Squeal with uncontrollable joy when I walk in the room (because he hasn't seen me in, like, two hours!). Get dressed, head towards door of his room, squirm and squeal with uncontrollable joy because he might spot one of his sisters (hopefully the one that allows him some breathing space, although the smothery one is okay too in small doses). Breakfast - normally a prune concoction in order to aid things as it were - covers face in as much food as possible. While eating breakfast, he routinely tips his head to the side (either one will do) in order to see around some invisible object in his way - extraordinarily cute. After breakfast - carpet play time also known as the time during which he is ignored so that I can eat my own breakfast, read the paper or clean up the kitchen (hah! good one... doesn't usually happen until at least 4:00 pm and where is that housekeeper I ordered!?). Soon after that, nap number one happens, preceded by a long drink at the mummy-fountain, after which I either take a quick shower or play a board game with Hope or bake with Hope or do something or other with Hope. Henry normally sleeps for two hours... I say 'normally' because the last two days he has been taking one-hour naps. Not what we're looking for. This means he has much less patience for the rest of the day for being ignored. Not so good when I have other people and things needing my attention. His afternoon is mainly a repeat of the morning including an afternoon nap but minus the breakfast. Rinse repeat is the way it goes until about supper when he gets much attention from his sisters, a full family meal followed by a bath with one of the two girls, naked playtime (if he's lucky) on the carpet of the girls' room and then bedtime around 7:30. At some point in the afternoon, while Hope and Emily are both at school, we do occasionally leave the house to do errands. That is the part of the day when senior citizens swoon over his cheeks and his name (everyone over 70 had a brother named Henry apparently) and his size. We like that part of the day mainly because we're outside of these four walls (although I do like our four walls). Henry loves errands - so much to take in and lots of chatting from me as I putter through stores or meet a friend for coffee.
In essence, I couldn't ask for an easier baby. He is sweet and loving and fun and laughs so easily and I could just eat him up. Especially his thighs. In fact, a few people could easily dine on those thighs. He has lots to go around.
Phew. Verbal diarhea Round 1 complete. Tune back here... possibly tomorrow... for the Christmas show. Eventually, hopefully by the end of this week, I'll be caught up at least as much as I can be after this much neglect.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
First taste
I realize that this week the blog has become a bit kid-centered (given that 2 out of my 3 posts are about the kids... that puts me at 66% kid posts). I hope to have other things to talk about next week.... but don't get your hopes up too much.
Anywho, Henry had his first solid (or at least, semi-solid) food tonight. He took to it like a house on fire. I dipped the spoon into the bowl of rice cereal/breastmilk and he lunged at that spoon like a fat kid on a Smartie. And that pretty much describes the way the rest of the bowl went down.
Anywho, Henry had his first solid (or at least, semi-solid) food tonight. He took to it like a house on fire. I dipped the spoon into the bowl of rice cereal/breastmilk and he lunged at that spoon like a fat kid on a Smartie. And that pretty much describes the way the rest of the bowl went down.
Monday, November 08, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
A positive update on Henry
Someone who lives in this house with me has pointed out a number of times that my early posts about Henry had an, um, negative tone to them. It's time I rectify that, whether you buy the assessment or not.
Henry was a very typical newborn. He slept fitfully but not badly. He needed to be rocked to sleep. He loved to breastfeed. He was 100% normal. The only hard part of that was that I had two other kids... and we were about to move. So I did indeed find the whole newborn stuff a bit more stressful this time around.
When we moved back to Ottawa, Henry's sleep improved - he typically slept from about 8:00 until 1:00 and then up around 4:00 again and then around 7:00 or 8:00. Not bad at all.
His naps though.... oh, don't get me started. His morning nap was and still is somewhere between 20 minutes to 45 minutes (if I'm lucky).
And then he had a week where he was up at night every 1 to 2 hours. Ouch.
Again, 100% normal.
But a few days ago I reached my limit on his crappy naps. I deduced that when he had good naps (like on travel days when he naps for long stints in the car) he sleeps better at night. It was time to take action.
If you follow me on Facebook you'll know that I expressed a bit of angst at letting a 4 month old cry-it-out. I've never been much of a cry-it-outer. Emily threw up when we tried it with her. End of experiment. Hope was so stubborn that she was hoarse after a week of crying. Awful. And not willing to do that again.
I threw caution to the wind three days ago when I was on the phone with my friend Meredith and Henry woke after a 20 minute nap. I just had a feeling that he could do it. So, I kept talking, he kept crying, badda-boom badda-bing he was back asleep thirty minutes later. Yes, he was pretty mad in those 30 minutes but it so paid off! The next day, I put him in his crib awake, 3 minutes later he was asleep. Since then, if he goes to bed awake he fusses for a few minutes and then goes to sleep.
Last night, he slept from 8:15 to 5:40 this morning. Hello success! I've got this parenting thing licked!
Ahem... I must divulge that I'm typing this while listening to him cry through the monitor after a 25 minute nap.
So maybe his naps still aren't perfect but he's doing great, being so cooperative when I need him to be and sleeping great at night.... for now. I'm under no illusions. I know how these babies operate. Next week could be a different kettle of fish.
But even on the bad nights this dude gives me laughs and smiles and cuddles and cute stuff that would melt anyone's heart. Perhaps there is a bit of bias... but I'm willing to say that this is one great and easy baby right now. Way to go, Henry!
His latest favourite move is to grab his feet - the happy baby pose - and laugh and giggle while I change him. And his laugh! Oh his laugh! I have to record his squeaky gaspy snort. It is so funny.
On Friday he had his 4-month check-up. The guy is humongous. He is 20 lbs exactly, 70 cm long. We now have to upgrade to a new car seat which means our Snap N Go stroller will now be useless to us as well. The price you pay for having a bruiser I guess.
Hm.... still crying. Perhaps morning naps just aren't his thing.
Sunday, September 05, 2010
Henry 365 update
It seems I fell off the wagon for a while but really it's just that I haven't been on the ball uploading the photos.
Until tonight.
I went crazy organizing and downloading and uploading and whatsit. So, go on over to Henry 365 to see what's new.
Until tonight.
I went crazy organizing and downloading and uploading and whatsit. So, go on over to Henry 365 to see what's new.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Henry at 1 month
Dear Henry,
You turned one month old last weekend. This week has seen you become so much more aware of everything around you. Your little bright eyes can focus on so many more things. You are still a baby who loves to be in arms and not set down much. You'll put up with a few minutes before squawking, which wears thin after a while, I admit. I try and remind myself that in a few months I'll look back on all the cuddles nostalgically rather than get irritated by having to hold you so much.
You also challenge me in getting you to sleep but lucky for us you take a soother and I've figured out that the best way to get you to sleep in the evening is to feed you and then rock you in our lovely avacado green rocking chair while you work on the soother.
Of course, your real preference is to use Mummy as a soother. You are a definite boob man and it shows in how big you are. Three weeks ago you weighed 9 lbs 3 oz (you were 8 lbs 11 oz when you were born 5 weeks ago) and this week you weighed in at 12 lbs 8 oz. I think I'm producing cream! You and I have worked really hard on your latch. I was motivated to get it right this time; I'm tired of sore nipples! And it has paid off in how much milk you are getting and how much easier (and therefore enjoyable) breastfeeding is now. My favourite part is still when you fall asleep on my after you're done feeding. A close second is how noisy you are when you breastfeed. I even recorded it. Emily declared that you sound like a flock of geese. I always thought Hope was noisy when she fed but you definitely win the prize. It's adorable.
I have to admit that you do challenge me sometimes and I get worn out. You're letting me get only 2 hours of sleep at a time but then I have to also remember that you are really easy to get back to sleep in the night and you don't really cry for any reason but wanting to be held and wanting to eat. You're pretty easy to cart around and you love the bath.
I know that these are early days and things will likely only get easier. I just have to enjoy the way you are now in the midst of our moving chaos and not wish you to be any different because really.... you are perfect just the way you are.
It's you I like, Henry.
Love,
Mummy
You turned one month old last weekend. This week has seen you become so much more aware of everything around you. Your little bright eyes can focus on so many more things. You are still a baby who loves to be in arms and not set down much. You'll put up with a few minutes before squawking, which wears thin after a while, I admit. I try and remind myself that in a few months I'll look back on all the cuddles nostalgically rather than get irritated by having to hold you so much.
You also challenge me in getting you to sleep but lucky for us you take a soother and I've figured out that the best way to get you to sleep in the evening is to feed you and then rock you in our lovely avacado green rocking chair while you work on the soother.
Of course, your real preference is to use Mummy as a soother. You are a definite boob man and it shows in how big you are. Three weeks ago you weighed 9 lbs 3 oz (you were 8 lbs 11 oz when you were born 5 weeks ago) and this week you weighed in at 12 lbs 8 oz. I think I'm producing cream! You and I have worked really hard on your latch. I was motivated to get it right this time; I'm tired of sore nipples! And it has paid off in how much milk you are getting and how much easier (and therefore enjoyable) breastfeeding is now. My favourite part is still when you fall asleep on my after you're done feeding. A close second is how noisy you are when you breastfeed. I even recorded it. Emily declared that you sound like a flock of geese. I always thought Hope was noisy when she fed but you definitely win the prize. It's adorable.
I have to admit that you do challenge me sometimes and I get worn out. You're letting me get only 2 hours of sleep at a time but then I have to also remember that you are really easy to get back to sleep in the night and you don't really cry for any reason but wanting to be held and wanting to eat. You're pretty easy to cart around and you love the bath.
I know that these are early days and things will likely only get easier. I just have to enjoy the way you are now in the midst of our moving chaos and not wish you to be any different because really.... you are perfect just the way you are.
It's you I like, Henry.
Love,
Mummy
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Oh Henry
Turns out that Henry is a very normal 1 month old. In other words, he's cranky when awake, wants to suck (on me) all the time, and fights sleep. Hope made sure I forgot what this was all like when she was a baby and made having her around downright easy. Henry's decided to remind me of why the first three months or so of a new baby.... kinda suck (although all the cuddles are still amazing).
And so don't except the following from me too often:
And so don't except the following from me too often:
- a pleasant disposition
- good looking hair
- having showered recently
- freshly applied deodorant
- coherent blog posts or emails
- a clean house
- polite responses to comparisons of how tired a person is who doesn't have a new baby in the house
- photos of Henry every day (oops!)
- declining the offer of tea, liquor, a hot meal or any other kind of help
Monday, June 07, 2010
Wednesday, June 02, 2010
I'm thankful for....
- rain and cooler temperatures
- a good latch (and improving every day)
- a two-hour nap for me this morning (after literally being up almost all night)
- hot meals brought over by friends
- family and friends who invite the girls for playdates
- a healthy baby
- a hefty milk supply
- healing nipples
- good hemorrhoid medication (remember my experience with Hope?)
- a good duck and cover reflex when faced with Henry's impression of Manneken Pis
- an amazing midwife
- a friend who shows up and takes me to Starbucks for an hour (with Henry in tow)
- borrowed baby equipment, and:
an amazing partner who is going full out these days to make everything a bit easier for me and the girls
two amazing girls who are the best helpers and best friends
this guy. My threats to put him up on Kijiji after last night were just a joke. Seriously.Monday, May 31, 2010
New photos of Henry
Yes, yes, I know... this whole photos of Henry thing is getting a bit played. Thing is that it is pretty much all I have time to post at this point although I have lots of other things I want to post about. Finding the time with three kids, one who is brand spanking new, is the challenge. So, here is a great photo we got of Henry and Hope a few days ago:
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Henry 365
I've been told by more than one person who has three children that the third child ends up with even less photos of them than the second child did. I was talking about this with my good friend Marnie (now blog-outed!), wonder woman and captain of a house that contains four (four!) children. She suggested I do a pseudo Project 365 but have the subject only be Henry: a photo each day for a year. Thing is, I missed today but up until today (Henry's eighth day) I've been on a roll.
So, I've started a Flickr account where I'll try my best to have a photo a day of Henry up there. This will not be a lesson in photography skills or framing my best shots (heck, I don't even own photo-editing software). This is all about Henry and keeping track of his first year. I'll try and figure out how to put it in my sidebar (done!). I must highlight this photo that I took of Henry a few days ago though (I think it's pretty awesome):
And as for today? It was a breastfeeding un-friendly day but we seem to be back on track after help from my saviour, my midwife Mina who I triple-love. I want her to move in with us.
So, I've started a Flickr account where I'll try my best to have a photo a day of Henry up there. This will not be a lesson in photography skills or framing my best shots (heck, I don't even own photo-editing software). This is all about Henry and keeping track of his first year. I'll try and figure out how to put it in my sidebar (done!). I must highlight this photo that I took of Henry a few days ago though (I think it's pretty awesome):
And as for today? It was a breastfeeding un-friendly day but we seem to be back on track after help from my saviour, my midwife Mina who I triple-love. I want her to move in with us.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Henry update
(Photos now below! and additional text....)
This is bound to become the All Henry All the Time blog for a while. Indulge me.
Here is a quick trip down the last few days:
This is bound to become the All Henry All the Time blog for a while. Indulge me.
Here is a quick trip down the last few days:
- John's mom has been here entertaining the girls, doing dishes, cleaning etc. It's been AWESOME. She just left. That's NOT awesome.
- Henry loves the boob. He's a champion breastfeeder, which is great. He is a terrible latcher right now. Not great. He screams and fusses when trying to latch him. This, along with my painful breasts, makes me wonder if I have candida (and thus he has thrush). I'm going to get some gentian violet later today to treat it just in case. (Ed. to add: after a meltdown by me and a call to my midwife and explaining how Henry is behaving, she declared it immediately a gas bubble and that I need to have him in an upright position for feeding when he is screaming like that when latching. She was right to a point. He still screams but gives up more quickly. It's still very stressful and crappy and he still is impatient about the milk coming when he finally does latch on. All in all, the usual for breastfeeding.)
- He sleeps about 2 to 3 hours at a time. He's very easy to get to sleep. He eats, he falls asleep on my shoulder/chest, I transfer him to his bed. Easy peasy for the most part.
- Last night he spent his night in the side-sleeper thingy (a co-sleeper crib-like thing attached to the side of our bed). Much better sleep for me resulted.
- He loves to be cuddled and held but is okay on his own too.
- Today will be our first walk in the stroller as I promised Emily I'd pick her up from school so she could show off her brother. (Ed. to add: Went well but maybe it was a bit early. I was exhausted when I got home.)
- The girls have reacted... as expected. They are totally in love with him and smother him with attention but they have also acted out with some tantrums, mischief, emotional ups and downs. We're being patient but some days the patience runs thin with my emotional child (Emily).
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