ok - have got both kids down for midday nap within 10 min of each other and am eating a sandwich, writing here and then jumping in the shower!!
Nikki - My DH had a sudden panic attack the other day when we started talking about boyfriends etc. I don't think he ever really thought about it! He was so cute!
Dh and i discussed this many times before and now that we have 2 girls we are joking that they are not allowed to date until they are 20!! we are so not looking forward to the hormones and the attitudes that will prbably be crazy by the time they hot their teens (just look at how 9 year old girls act these days - what will it be like in 10-15 years time?)
also - that comment your FIL made is so passive agressive i cannot believe it - it is something my grandmother would say although she is not so subtle :evil:
Michelle - I personally would jump at the chance to leave the kids with a family member. we are rying to convince my mom to come back out in October (when Liv is 8 mo) so we can get away. we would enlist the couple who looked after alex when liv was born and that way with 2-3 adults they shoudl manage for 48 hours!! I htink he kids are fine - it is prov=bably easier to be apart for 2 days at that age rather than the constant coming and going... and as long as the carer is familiar i don't think there are any problems (it is more about reluctance to go to strangers...)
we do let Olivia watch TV/DVDs mostly because alex already has them on and also becuase she really likes it. she gets really calm and relaxed watching most of the time. We have Baby E, Bear in the big blue house (great music) and wiggles or spot most of the time.
i am personally a huge fan of BE videos. i watched them WITH alex from 6-8mo and always did it as an activity together (never on her own) and would just do a commentary with it - telling her what things were, descdribing things, as she got older i asked her questions. she had/has an enormous vocab thanks to this and all the books we read. an example: my mom brought out the Baby Monet one recently - all about the seasons - alex watched it 2-3 times before she suddenly had a new range of vocabulary that i had not had good enough graphics/books to teach her. now 1 month later she walks around describing the seasons, weather, associates green with Spring, etc and when i say it is raining she wonders aloud if there is a rainbow!
Tarri - we are doing whatever EASY Liv needs in any part of the day. basically during this spurt she has had many cycles where she has gotten tired by 1hr 30 at the latest (rather than 1h 45 - 2h 10 that we had built up to). so i put her down and then when she gets to 45 min she comes into the light sleep and realises she is hungry and starts crying out for food. so sometimes it is 3 - 3.5 hrs between feeds but based on hunger not nap times. I hope things continue to improve for you - is she wetting her nappy so much because of taking more food???.
Julie b - sorry things are going crazy and that wake to sleep has not worked for you. can't think of a suggestion just yet :?
we use gro bags (sleeveless) for alex and are going to switch to them for liv soon. inthe meantime i have been using a cheaper one we had fom earlier with alex (has arms, made of fleece/cotton). the gro bags are quite long so they last for an entire season or 2 The cheaper ones i have are truer to the baby's size (so this winter bag is just for this winter etc)
Tired signs now - rubbing eyes seems to be the big one, twisting to the side when lying down (subtle difference that only i can see so far), i am starting to see some reduction in her coordination now that she is sitting up and there is something to really watch (ie - playing well with a toy and then starts droppping it more or weakly playing with it)
Vidya - olivia still needs to be fed in the quiet - shge cannot handle any distractions. even her own room distracts her - she twists to look at the wall or up at the light... It has also been a while since oi took her out apart from awake time, but we recently had some outings and she slept finein the pram as long as i got her out of the car before she fell asleep i always completely cover the pram so she cannot see out and then i pray that the motion will do the trick - usually works fine!
Christie - don't feel too bad about her falling off the bed - i did it twice when alex was young :oops: and when she was 1 yo my father in law was supposed to watch her for 2 min while my MIL and i left the room - he turned his back completely and she smashed backwards on the ground - he said he thought we were watching her :evil:
no advice on the camping - let us know how it goes though as i have agreed to go when the weather warms up (i never went with alex - kept telling Dh it was too hard) i am trying to be more relaxed this time and give it a chance before i dismiss the idea.
US - alex's spots are less today - they were just red not raised or anything.
olivia has (a probable) burst eardrum!!! i found dried blood all in her left ear this morning. the audiologist was on my to do list for days :oops: I called andshe is booked in for the 8th - he said it is actually a good thing as it is the body's way of healing and not to freak myself out.
olivia is waking and crying must dash - no shower :oops: and no time to re-read all of this -sorry for any yucky writing