Sweet Baby O is a wonderful and amazing sister. It took her a little bit to learn how to deal with her jealously of the new squish; nevertheless, she is now an amazing and caring sister.
She loves to gently kiss her brother on the head, play with him, share everything she can with him, talk to him. She proudly introduces him as “my Ollie”. Its heart melting.
It seems so far that our gentle parenting approach and treating her like her own person has been great so far.
Today’s blog post is just about how amazing it is to see children grown and learn. They grow so fast and learn so much, it is truly amazing. The mind of a child is something to be marveled.
O turned 18 months a few weeks back, and she has changed so much since her 1st Birthday already. Her hair is starting to grown in really good, and she is picking up it feels like at least one new word a day. She can even follow commands now!
Just last night, I was on the couch, and I asked her to bring me my phone for something. She smiled, walked over to it, and brought it right to me. I was stoked. Of course it is important to be polite and use your “please” and “thank you”s, because that is how we are teaching O to be polite. By being polite to her. She says please and thank you, and it is so adorable.
Children are a gift from God and deserve to be happy and loved. That is all that they need. Just remember that, and enjoy the ride. Toddlers are like their own little circus side show.
About 6 months or so ago, we were struggling to give O baths. She didn’t enjoy bath tub baths, sink baths, and her infant bather was too small at this point. (Shes a tall girl!) She would generally just sit and scream. It was really sad because up until this point she had enjoyed bath time. We were struggling to find a solution to this problem.
One day, after another failed bathtime, I went to take a shower, and told O’s mommy to let me try showering with her. I went and got in the shower, and her mommy handed her to me and thus began the experiment.
At first all she would do was hold on tightly to my shoulder. It was difficult to clean her, but at least she wasn’t screaming. She gradually would relax and let me clean her. Gradually we’ve made it to now where she will play with the water, and we play the naming game (she points and I tell her what it is).
I also feel like coshowering has really helped my bonding with her. Since O’s mommy exclusively breastfed until O started showing signs of food interest (she is still breastfeeding! Awesomeness!), O always wants her mommy. There is nothing wrong with that at all, and its great; nevertheless, as a dad you do feel a bit “out of the loop” on helping the baby. Besides holding her when she slept, changing diapers, and playing with her I couldn’t do too much to help it felt like. Now that showering her has become “my thing”, I feel like we have a deeper bond, and its a 10 minutes that I enjoy very much.
So we have O a little Beco baby carrier we found at a baby resale shop before she was born. Now that our sweet girl is 18 months and starting to mimic everything we do, she loves to put her carrier on just like mommy.
The other evening when I was watching her, she brought me her Beco, wanting me to put it on her. We don’t own a Beco to carry her, and I’ve only seen O’s Mommy put it on her a few times.
Squirmy and impatient toddler with a confused dad made for an interesting few minutes.
What ensued was pretty cute.
It’s never to early to teach your children healthy and awesome habits. They are pretty cute when they copy you too. It makes me feel like a robot master.
O’s Mommy had a pretty wicked clogged duct the other night. Nothing she could do would make it clear. She tried her gel rings, pumping, nursing, etc. No relief.
It was around midnight by the time she woke me up. I knew it was bad if she woke me up. I asked if she had tried using a hot rag. She said no, so I got up, went to the bathroom made the water as hot as I could, and went back to my wife to help her massage it out.
After a few minutes of intense massaging, crying, and several trips to the bathroom to keep the rag hot, the duct cleared. A stream of milk shot across our king sized bed.
Husbands: If your wife has a clogged duct, then its serious business. It could easily lead to a serious infection and harm your spouse. So, if the problem arises, remember, a hot rag and massage. Yes it will hurt, but think of it like I do, like it is a bad horrible pimple that needs popping.
Take care of your wife, and you will be a happy person.
Baby O just recently got her 12 moth vaccines. Yes, they were a little late because we moved and had to establish care at a new pediatrician.
***Disclaimer: I am very open minded about vaccines. I lean pro-vaccine because I do understand the science behind it, and do believe that it is a good thing. I also lean anti-vaccine because I don’t necessarily trust vaccine makers to put the best things in the vaccines, nor all doctors, nor do I trust in many people the safety and well-being of my child. Nevertheless; I trust in God. I trust in His timing and His will. Therefore; we vaccinate.***
All her previous vaccinations had gone relatively well to-date. O’s Mommy and I were concerned about the MMR and Varicella; because they were the two live vaccines. O’s Mommy asked the doctor about spacing them out and they said that was something that they didn’t do. So, we went ahead and got her the vaccines.
Next thing we know, she starts developing the rash over the weekend, and has a fever. The paper said to expect this, so we give her some Tylenol to help ease her discomfort. The she starts scratching. The baby never scratches. We call the night hotline and they say if she has a rash and fever for 3 days or so, then bring her in. A few days, O’s Mommy calls and gets an appointment because she is still rashed. Turns out she had a reaction to the Varicella (Chicken Pox) vaccine that only 3% of children get.
It would be my family’s luck, right?
Anyway, despite the scare we still believe that vaccinating is one of the best ways we have of keeping our child healthy and happy. If you choose not to vaccinate, then that is your choice, just like to vaccinate my little girl is mine.
So, O’s Mommy had the desire to milk share. For any of you that are unaware, some mothers are unable to Breastfeed for one reason or another and don’t want to use formula. So, mothers that have plenty of supply can choose to either donate or sell their milk. So, we decided since we were doing well on our freezer supply that we would try to donate.
Initially we were hesitant, because there are some mothers out there that desire donor milk with some tough restrictions. Restrictions like:dairy free, gluten free, soy free, fast food free diets. Needless to say, that is just crazy. If you are receiving free, donated milk you need to chill out. You need all those restrictions, then go buy some. Anyway, we finally found a recipient and the story continues.
The recipient was totally awesome. We donated a whole lot if milk to her, like 10 gallons lot. She was always polite and extremely grateful and happy. She became a friend instantly.
If your wife still has over supply, or your freezer is full, I suggest donating. There are people out there that need help.
I may be a little biased, but it’s true. My little girl is already giving “thumbs up” and fist pounding. She’s a cute little princess and crazier than a pirate. She is too cool for most things but will do anything. She is mad one second and then laughing while making farting sounds the next. She will move hair from your face ever so gently, to try to scratch your eyes out.
Needless to say, she is a handful and I wouldn’t want it any other way. I love her the way she is. She’s part of our crazy, beautiful life. Yeah, I stole that from Ke$ha, but who cares. Point proven. I love my kid more than yours. That to me makes her better. I bet you feel the same about yours anyway.
Baby O, So Wonderful 